We’ll call this one #CarTroubleWhileBlack. Two black women in Charlotte, North Carolina were harassed and threatened by a drunk white woman in their apartment complex while waiting for AAA service. The interaction was all caught on video and now the white lady is facing charges of simple assault and communicating threats. The suspect has also been terminated from her employer, #Spectrum due to the incident.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
In the video one of the victims, Chele Garris, posted on her Facebook, it shows 51-year-old, Susan Westwood, approach two black women and call them “b**ch” and ask “Is your baby daddy here?” before also saying, “You’re hanging around a place you don’t belong – get out of here!” She also stated, “I’m hot, I’m beautiful, I’m white,” several times in addition to claiming she makes $125k with her employer, who is being reported as Spectrum. According to the Charlotte Observer, Westwood also yelled from a distance, “Do I need to bring out my concealed weapon, too? This is North Carolina by the way.” The post already has more than one million views, 16,000 shares and 425 reactions on Facebook.
Garris and her sister, Leisa, are heard throughout the video asking the suspect to leave them alone and one even told the other not to entertain Westwood’s comments.
One of the black women is eventually heard calling 911 and saying, “The lady was pushing me in my face.” Throughout the altercation, the women both had calm demeanors and while on the phone with the dispatcher, she thanked them and answered all of their questions.
“It surprised me,” she told the police dispatcher. “I’ve been living here for over a year and I’ve never been treated this way. I’m a resident just like her.” One of the Garris sisters does live at the apartment complex, according to the video and public records.
A Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department spokesperson said warrants have been issued for Westwood but have not yet been served.
