2015 BET Awards - Red Carpet

Zendaya Coleman recently put a store on blast after one of the employees treated her poorly—for reasons that she thought seemed to be about her skin tone.

But while attending the Michael Kors Access Smartwatch launch party in New York City on Sunday (September 11), the 20-year-old made it clear she’s proud she told the world about the incident, saying, “I feel like you’re supposed to speak up on issues that you think are important. Honestly, that’s what social media is for, you know, to share stories and have conversations and open dialogue about it.”

When asked how she’d deal with the haters that came along with speaking her mind on the Internet, the former Disney star admitted, “Well, that’s gonna happen regardless. In many ways, if you don’t have haters, you’re not doing your job. You gotta have people to hate on you. That’s the best part!”

Following the incident at Vons Grocery, the company released a statement:

“At Vons we strive to treat each and every customer with the utmost respect. There is a policy that limits gift card purchases using a credit card. Zendaya was able to purchase gift cards up to our limit, and we apologize for any inconvenience or misunderstanding. We respect Zendaya’s voice in the community and similarly are committed to diversity and inclusion. Moreover, we understand that race is a sensitive issue in America and view this experience as a reminder that every interaction is an opportunity to treat each customer as we ourselves would like to be treated.”

Zendaya’s grace and class win again.

SOURCE: Us Weekly | PHOTO CREDIT: Getty 

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