A flower shop in Georgetown, Kentucky, is facing backlash after a Black woman recorded her termination and claimed management made racially charged remarks as she attempted to clock out and collect her belongings.
In videos posted online, the former employee is seen calmly asking to clock out and retrieve her items from her car after being told she was fired at Leann’s Local Petals. Instead of allowing her to finish, managers repeatedly told her to leave and threatened to call the police.
At one point, a manager can be heard telling others in the shop to “watch your purses and stuff” and to “lock their cars,” comments the woman called discriminatory.
“Being Black is really a crime,” she said on video posted on Instagram by @culture.20. “I’ve never stolen anything here. I do my job. I’m just here to get my things.”
In another video, a Black woman confronted the managers directly, asking if they were racist.
One manager responded that the owner “has Black kids,” which the woman countered does not excuse racism.
The incident has since gained traction online, with critics pointing out that the shop appears to have disabled comments on its social media pages after the controversy spread.
“I’ll leave a negative review using all 20 of my Gmail accounts, I got this y’all 👌🏾,” one person commented.
Community members have described the exchange as an example of how implicit bias can play out in workplaces, particularly when employees of color are involved in disputes.
The fired Black woman said in her video that she was not aggressive, had not stolen, and only wanted to complete her sign-out process.
“I was just told to leave,” she said. “Like being Black is literally a crime.”
As of now, Leann’s Local Petals has not issued a public statement regarding the viral incident.
