Legendary Motown artist Alexander Morris plans to sue a hospital in his hometown of Detroit after he says staff racially profiled him and mistakenly assumed he was mentally ill.
Since 2019, Morris has served as the lead singer of The Four Tops. The legendary music group is known for timeless hits, including “I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch),” “Baby I Need Your Loving,” and “Ain’t No Woman.” However, that fact was questioned earlier this month when the singer sought treatment for a long-time heart condition at Ascension Oakland-Macomb Hospital.
“I came in with chest pains, couldn’t breathe for a history of cardiomyopathy,” he explained in an interview with CBS News.
“Because you refuse to take two minutes to verify my identity, you stop my treatment, roll me in the hall, and set me to go into psych. That’s a little bit much for me. My health should’ve been first.”
Attorney Maurice Davis claims hospital staff asked for Morris’ identification after his client voiced safety concerns due to threats against the singing group. Once Morris provided his ID and mentioned he was a member of The Four Tops, it was assumed he was mentally unstable.
“He had his I.D. with him. They didn’t believe he was a member of The Four Tops,” Davis told CBS News. “They didn’t believe he was the lead singer of The Four Tops. They believed he was insane for saying something like that.”
Morris also claims hospital staff stopped treatment, triggering multiple seizures. He added he was put in a straightjacket for about an hour and was told by a white staff member to “sit his Black ass down.”
The singer’s wife came to the rescue when she was able to verify his identity with hospital staff. To rectify the misunderstanding, Morris received a $25 gift card at Meijer, a popular supermarket chain across the Midwest, which the Michigan native considered poor compensation.
He plans to file a lawsuit against the medical facility for what he believes was a racial profiling incident. In addition, he and his lawyer believe hospital administrators should terminate the medical staff involved.
Ascension Oakland-Macomb Hospital has since issued a statement addressing the claims about the alleged mistreatment of Morris.
The statement reads: “The health, safety and well-being of our patients, associates and community members remains our top priority. We remain committed to honoring human dignity and acting with integrity and compassion for all persons and the community. We do not condone racial discrimination of any kind. We are unable to provide details on cases under investigation.”
