If you’re a non-white person who’s entered a Barneys department store recently looking to pick up some high-end designer goods, chances are you’ve had a less than optimal experience. That’s because according to a recent press release, Barneys actively engaged in some serious racial profiling. Well, in order to make amends (if amends can even be made for blatant racism), Barneys is making some changes to the tune of $525,000.

“Profiling and racial discrimination remain a problem in our state, but not one we are willing to accept. This agreement will continue our work to ensure there’s one set of rules for everyone in public accommodations, including customers in New York’s retail establishments,” Attorney General Schneiderman said. “This agreement will correct a number of wrongs, both by fixing past policies and by monitoring the actions of Barneys and its employees to make sure that past mistakes are not repeated.”

What is Barneys getting for their half-million? The money, they say, goes towards costs, fees and penalties. In addition, the changes they plan to implement include new loss-prevention (anti-theft) policies, employee training and something called an “Anti-Profiling Consultant.” Another big change includes more stringent record keeping, both in terms of complaints of profiling and visits (and closed-circuit camera access) by law enforcement.

Both Barneys employees and customers delivered the following complaints to the Attorney General’s Civil Rights Bureau:

• Door guards identified minority customers exclusively as warranting surveillance;
• In-store detectives followed minority customers, even when the customers had been identified by sales associates as clients and frequent patrons of the store;
• In-store detectives disproportionately asked sales associates to reprint receipts after minority customers made purchases in order to confirm the purchases were legitimate;
• In-store detectives disproportionately called sales associates who handled and completed minority customers’ transactions in order to investigate the customers’ credit card use; and
• Some sales associates avoided serving minority customers so they would not be contacted by loss-prevention employees seeking to investigate the use of credit cards by minority customers.

“Every citizen is entitled to equal protection under the law, plain and simple. This basic fact cannot be forgotten, especially in New York, which so many people from different backgrounds call home. This agreement is an effort to correct past injustices, and I believe it will do just that. Eric Schneiderman and the Office of the Attorney General should be commended for their fine work,” said Assemblyman Karim Camara.