DC’s Attorney General Is Suing Amazon for Secretly Excluding Majority-Black Neighborhoods From Prime Deliveries

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December 5, 2024

By Damare Baker, Washingtonian

Amazon is facing a legal case after halting deliveries in some Washington DC neighborhoods (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

DC Attorney General Brian Schwalb filed a lawsuit Wednesday against Amazon, alleging the online retailer secretly stopped providing its fast delivery service to Amazon Prime customers residing in two majority-Black Ward 7 and 8 neighborhoods.

The lawsuit, filed in DC Superior Court, alleges Amazon has been excluding two zip codes east of the Anacostia River (20019 and 20020) from receiving its advertised two-day service, instead exclusively using slower third-party services like UPS and the US Postal Service.

The Attorney General’s office says Amazon should reverse its “exclusion” and pay financial damages to the 48,000 residents of the affected neighborhoods who bought Prime memberships.

“Amazon is charging tens of thousands of hard-working Ward 7 and 8 for an expedited delivery service it promises but does not provide,” Schwalb said in a statement. “While Amazon has every right to make operational changes, it cannot covertly decide that a dollar in one zip code is worth less than a dollar in another.”

Amazon refuted any claims of discrimination as “categorically false,” in a statement to Washingtonian. “We made the deliberate choice to adjust our operations, including delivery routes and times, for the sole reason of protecting the safety of drivers,” said Kelly Nantel, a spokesperson for the company.

Keep reading to learn why Amazon felt this was necessary.

Many Black people live in specific neighborhoods because of redlining.

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