A small-town bakery in Ohio has finally gotten the triumph it deserved over a left-wing college that ruined its reputation.
Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio, announced Thursday that it will pay the local bakery $36.59 million after a legal defamation battle.
The Free Press has followed the case of Gibson’s Bakery, which, as multiple courts have now determined, was falsely accused of racism by Oberlin College in 2016.
In 2016, a black man attempted to steal two bottles of wine from Gibson’s Bakery and was encountered by a store employee, who was the owner’s son and white.
The suspect tried to flee, the employee tried to detain him and a scuffle ensued. The fight spilled out into the street, and at one point the suspect threatened to kill the employee. Two black women who were reportedly accomplices to the crime joined the melee and even snapped at police once they arrived on the scene.
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The three who were arrested were students at Oberlin and the case prompted protests of the bakery, a community icon for more than a century.
Eventually, the Oberlin student senate adopted a resolution stating Gibson’s Bakery had “a history of racial profiling and discriminatory treatment.” The resolution also called for a boycott of the bakery.
Some didn’t buy it. Retired Oberlin professor Roger Copeland told CBS News, “I can understand why people were looking for some outlet for their frustration, but it’s just counterproductive to bend that anger towards a small family business that to my knowledge is not guilty of the sort of racial profiling that people accuse it of.”
In August, the Ohio state Supreme Court refused to consider Oberlin’s appeal.
“We are disappointed by the Court’s decision. However, this does not diminish our respect for the law and the integrity of our legal system,” the college wrote in a Thursday news release. “This matter has been painful for everyone. We hope that the end of the litigation will begin the healing of our entire community.”
“With Oberlin’s decision to not pursue any additional appeals, the Gibson Family’s fight is finally over. Truth still matters, and David has overcome Goliath,” Gibson’s Bakery said in a statement. “While Oberlin College has still refused to admit they were wrong, the jury, a unanimous panel from the court of appeals, and a majority of the Ohio Supreme Court decided otherwise. Now, the Gibsons will be able to rebuild the business their family started 137 years ago and keep the lights on for another generation.”
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