A White woman who made racist comments to a Black couple over an argument at a New York City dog park was fired from her job after video was shared online.
Frederick Joseph posted a video of part of the confrontation in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
According to Joseph, the woman told him and his fiancée:
"You're not from around here. Go back to your hood. Stay in your hood. Stay in your hood."
This is when he decided to start recording.
At the dog park in Brooklyn with my fianc\u00e9 and this white woman was threatening to call police and told us to \u201cstay in our hood\u201d because she had our dog confused with another dog who had been barking loudly. So, I started recording and she tried to slap the phone out my hand.pic.twitter.com/9MXwMiU3Qb— Frederick Joseph (@Frederick Joseph) 1632615453
The incident started when the woman tried to confront Joseph over his dog. According to him, she thought his dog was being aggressive.
Joseph tried to explain she must have been mistaken, when she told him to "stay in [his] hood."
He told CBS2 New York:
"At that point, I'm like, look, what you're doing is deeply, deeply offensive, deeply racist, and I want to get this on camera because I don't want there to be any misconceptions about what took place here."
"She was saying a lot of things, and that's when, like, finally, like, 'You guys need to take your dog out of here. You people shouldn't even be here'."
At the start of the video, the woman tries to knock the phone out of Joseph's hand. When this proves unsuccessful, she gives him a rude gesture.
A bystander in the video, Steve Tracy, is asked to verify what the woman said, which he agrees with Joseph.
Tracy also spoke with CBS2, saying:
"As those words were coming out and things started to unfold, it was pretty obvious to me, like, this is… this is not OK."
And the internet agreed it was not ok.
But infuriating that we have to rely on "good White people" to back us up because of White woman (feigned) victimhood...— Residual Self Image (@Residual Self Image) 1632619592
Ugh!!! I hate this for you. Tried to claim the victim until the other white person confirmed it. My fellow white people speak up and speak out.— Amanda (@Amanda) 1632624284
She is disgusting,you don't treat people that wayhttps://twitter.com/FredTJoseph/status/1441933772983840768\u00a0\u2026— Frank Mannino (@Frank Mannino) 1632621186
This exactly how you make racism expensive. All that holding hands and we all humam stuff hardly works. Some people only care about their self-interests. Financial accountability is the only way people will change.https://twitter.com/FredTJoseph/status/1441919836112650242\u00a0\u2026— Bougie Black Girl (@Bougie Black Girl) 1632749155
The video had some online wondering who this woman was.
On the internet, things rarely stay secret for long.
Yeah, unless she has a twin who lives in Brooklyn, this is her.pic.twitter.com/WqEXxpkBKi— Frederick Joseph (@Frederick Joseph) 1632664363
I\u2019ve been told that @DerekjAndersen and @bevyhq have let go of Emma Sarley, as her racism against me and fianc\u00e9 doesn\u2019t align with their values. I hope this is a lesson in accountability and consequences for Emma and others.pic.twitter.com/vgHgmL0dCa— Frederick Joseph (@Frederick Joseph) 1632700315
The woman was identified as Emma Sarley, and her LinkedIn page was discovered. With this information, Joseph tagged her employer and asked if they were okay with how she reacted.
They were not, and announced she had been let go. Derek Andersen, the CEO of the company, also offered to provide help with a resolution between the two parties.
This led to a debate online about whether or not Sarley deserved to be identified and fired.
You don\u2019t belong here, but I\u2019m not racist. REALLY? But you ate most definitely fired for being\u2026RACIST https://twitter.com/theroot/status/1442523444235538444\u00a0\u2026— Delphia L Walker (@Delphia L Walker) 1632775410
She did it to herself. All she had to do was walk away— SouthWest Twon (@SouthWest Twon) 1632701998
The victim never asked for her termination. In a free market, employers can terminate anyone they think is a liability to their sales. This is called cause and effect, not narcissism.— Joseph Patrick \ud83e\udde2 (@Joseph Patrick \ud83e\udde2) 1632763636
She got her self fired actually— don juan (@don juan) 1632745305
Joseph responded to Sarley's firing too.
While he felt it was "unfortunate" she lost her job, he felt it was important for accountability.
"Having to bear the burden of racism, sexism, homophobia, etc...—I think that it's important for people to know that there are consequences for their actions. And I don't think it's up to victims to have to coddle people who are engaging in abuse."
Kerry Dolan/Forbes
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