Ollie’s Barbecue

E53956

Ollie’s Barbecue was a family-owned Birmingham, Alabama restaurant whose racially discriminatory service practices led to the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case Katzenbach v. McClung on the scope of federal civil rights law under the Commerce Clause.


Statements (45)
Predicate Object
instanceOf defendant in U.S. Supreme Court case
family-owned business
restaurant
affectedInterstateCommerce yes
associatedWithConstitutionalProvision Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution
associatedWithGovernmentOfficial Nicholas Katzenbach
associatedWithLaw Civil Rights Act of 1964
businessType public accommodation
category Civil rights era restaurant
United States Supreme Court case landmark business
challenged constitutionality of Title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as applied to it
city Birmingham
country United States
courtCaseDecisionYear 1964
courtCaseJurisdiction Supreme Court of the United States
customerSeatingPolicy dining area reserved for white customers only
historicalSignificance landmark example of federal power to prohibit racial discrimination in local businesses
impactOnCivilRightsEnforcement confirmed federal authority to enforce desegregation of restaurants
impactOnCivilRightsJurisprudence expanded interpretation of interstate commerce to include local restaurants using out-of-state supplies
industry food service industry
involvedInCourtCase Katzenbach v. McClung
knownFor racially discriminatory service practices
refusing to serve Black customers in its dining area
legalIssue application of Title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to restaurants
scope of federal civil rights law under the Commerce Clause
legalPrecedentFor federal regulation of discriminatory practices in small, local businesses tied to interstate commerce
locatedIn Birmingham, Alabama
United States
notableFor being a test case for the reach of Title II public accommodations provisions
operatedBy Ollie McClung, Jr.
Ollie McClung, Sr.
opposedBy U.S. Department of Justice
ownedBy McClung family
percentageOfFoodFromOutOfState approximately 50 percent
receivedGoodsFrom out-of-state suppliers
relatedCase Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States
servedCuisine Southern food
barbecue
servicePolicyBeforeCase refused to serve Black customers on premises except for take-out
state Alabama
status defunct
subjectOf Katzenbach v. McClung
SupremeCourtHoldingEffect required to cease racial discrimination in service
subject to federal regulation under the Commerce Clause
timePeriodOfNotoriety 1960s


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