Group faults mall for ejecting boy

Tyrone Square Mall's manager suggests he's open to apologizing to a teen ejected for wearing a sideways-turned hat.

By ROSALIND HELDERMAN

© St. Petersburg Times, published July 19, 2000

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ST. PETERSBURG -- Ephraim Sykes returned to Tyrone Square Mall on Tuesday wearing the same white cap that led security officials to eject him from the mall Saturday.

This time, however, he was joined by more than 50 people, including his father, the Rev. Manuel Sykes, his attorney and members of the Coalition of African-American Leadership at a news conference to protest his ouster from the mall.

"This is the beginning of the end of this kind of treatment," said Omali Yeshitela, chairman of the coalition's political action committee, just outside the mall's parking lot. "Tyrone mall will begin to treat our folk better and differently or else our folk will have to treat Tyrone differently."

Tuesday afternoon it appeared that mall officials might be open to change. Scott Rolston, Tyrone Square Mall manager, said he would not rule out the possibility of apologizing to Ephraim or reviewing the mall's rules.

Rolston said he has not yet spoken to the elder Sykes, but plans to later in the week.

"We're going to let things die down a little bit," Rolston said. "I would love to have the chance to speak with Rev. Sykes one on one."

Yeshitela and others at the conference threatened a boycott of the mall, which they said unfairly targeted Ephraim, 15, because he is black. After much debate, the St. Petersburg Area Black Chamber of Commerce board of directors adopted a resolution Tuesday evening noting the "conceived perception that African-Americans are treated unfairly at Tyrone Mall/Simon Properties," said chamber board chairman Darryl Rouson. The measure encouraged "local businesses to be sensitive to all of its patrons, particularly its African-American customers."

Ephraim was asked to leave the mall Saturday after security officials observed his cap turned sideways. Ephraim's supporters said he straightened the cap but was followed for 15 to 20 minutes by a guard who claimed the cap remained sideways and then ejected him from the mall.

[Times photo: Dirk Shadd] Ephraim Sykes wears his white cap as he stands beside his father, the Rev. Manuel Sykes, right, and activist Omali Yeshitele, left, among a crowd of more than 50 at a news conference Tuesday.

Mall officials have said that after confronting Ephraim once, they found him an hour later with his cap turned sideways again.

Those at the news conference also condemned a dress code policy that they say invites discrimination by giving mall security officers wide latitude to label clothing as gang-related. They also said the issue is not what was written on the hat -- the word "pimp" -- but the angle at which it was turned.

"I don't even think he knows what that means," Sykes said, referring to his son. "If he looks like the kind of person who buys and sells in women, I don't know about it. He sure doesn't have money around the house."

A posted rule at the mall forbids clothing that is "commonly recognized as gang-related."

"The question becomes what kind of training the security guards have had," said John Richardson, attorney for the Sykes family. "If they don't have proper training to interpret that policy, they're asking for problems."

Richardson said security officers unfairly apply the rule only to black youngsters. Richardson had pictures that he said depicted white youngsters freely wearing their hats turned sideways at the mall. The pictures are dark and grainy, however, and Richardson said he would like to try to have them lightened or enlarged before giving copies to the media.

But Tom Cernock, who heads security for all of the 255 malls owned or managed by the Simon Property group, including Tyrone Square Mall, said mall security works closely with local police departments to recognize and eliminate clothing that may indicate a gang presence in the mall among white or black shoppers.

Cernock said the policy is purposely vague to keep up with changing trends in local gangs. He insists a sideways-turned hat is now a popular gang sign.

"I can guarantee you that in Chicago or New York or in California, a sideways hat could signify gang activity," he said.

And in Florida?

"I'd imagine gangs are wearing them in Florida too," he said.

Gang activity was a problem at Tyrone Square several years ago, but has not been seen much recently, said Sgt. Dennis Simmons of the St. Petersburg Police Department's gang unit.

Even so, this kind of dress code is not standard at all malls. University Mall in Tampa, for instance, lifted a similar dress code two months ago when officials there learned the code violated policies of Glimcher Realty Trust Inc., which acquired the mall in 1999.

"We understand the codes, but we disagree with handling gangs that way," said Clare Calabrese, director of shopping center marketing for Glimcher Realty. "Oftentimes, if you have a dress code, it is not a black or white issue. There are some gray areas, and it is very easy to err on the side of personal interpretation."

Glimcher Realty owns 22 malls, but University Mall is the only Glimcher property in Florida. Tom Locke, general manager of University Mall, said the mall has seen no increase in gang activity since the dress code was lifted.

Some store employees at Tyrone mall Tuesday said, racial discrimination aside, the policy unfairly targets young people. "This clothing is what's hot," said David Spivey, co-manager of the hip-hop clothing store Demo. "It's very high fashion."

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