10:18 AM EST, 01/14/2025 (MT Newswires) -- (Updates with the company's response in the fifth paragraph.)

McDonald's (MCD) is facing a lawsuit over its Hacer National Scholarships Program, which provides college scholarships to Latino and Hispanic students, a court document showed on Monday.

The lawsuit, filed by the American Alliance for Equal Rights in the federal court in Nashville, alleges the program unlawfully discriminates against non-Hispanic people, violating Section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866.

The decades-old program has awarded over $33 million in scholarships, but eligibility is restricted to students with at least one Hispanic or Latino parent.

The lawsuit seeks an injunction to halt the program and make it available to all low-income students.

"We are in the process of reviewing the complaint and will respond to it accordingly," a McDonald's spokesperson told MT Newswires. "McDonald's announced its evolution on our inclusion work last week, and part of that process will be reviewing programs, in partnership with our franchisees as applicable, to ensure these programs align with our vision moving forward."

American Alliance for Equal Rights did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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