MORENO VALLEY, CALIFORNIA: On Monday, July 12, California resident Ya’Shear Bryant posted a Facebook video of an alleged incident of racial profiling at a Walmart. Bryant claimed that the woman falsely accused him of stealing her young child’s cell phone. “I know I’m Black with tattoos, so she automatically assumes I have it,” he said in the video. Now, the company that this woman is allegedly an employee of is looking into the matter.
As seen in the video, Bryant explained that the woman had tracked the phone and determined it was located in the parking lot next to his car. Bryant continued to tell the woman he did not have the device. “She runs up to me and says, ‘Excuse me, you have my son’s phone?’ I pull my phone out, and tell her I do not… The reason I’m not leaving is because I don’t have the phone. That’s why I’m not leaving.”
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Bryant, in the video, asked the woman what she would do once she realized he never had the phone. “What do I get? Just an apology?” he asked, to which, she responded, “Sure.” As Bryant began walking away, the woman followed him and demanded he stayed there until he gave the phone back. She continued to follow him through the parking lot before returning inside the Walmart. “I’m definitely pressing charges,” he told the camera. “This is racial profiling. You guys see it on camera yourself.”
“I have a family. I’m a married man ...” he continued. “I’m dealing with this woman’s irateness because her son can’t be responsible for a phone. That’s not my fault. But being racially profiled? That’s gonna be hers.” Moments later, the woman’s son walked into the frame with the missing phone in hand. “Her son found it in the car,” Bryant said as the woman could be seen talking to the child. “Now I’m gonna press charges. May I have your name ma'am, please?” To this, the woman responded with, “No. You go f*** yourself.”
Who is the 'Walmart Karen'?
Netizens soon figured out the identity of the woman – thanks in part to the t-shirt she was wearing that showed the name 'Kaiser Permanente,' which is a healthcare company. “From what I have found, her name is Liz and she works at the Kaiser off Magnolia in Riverside. The shirt she is wearing is worn at #KaiserPermanente. Hey, @aboutKP who is this woman (Liz) and do you approve of this behavior?” wrote a Twitter user.
Another person tweeted, “#KaiserKaren has been identified as Liz de la Torres who works for Kaiser Permanente @aboutKP.” Diversity activist April Reign tweeted, “Waiting to hear more from @KPSCALnews @kpthrive @aboutKP about their employees Liz de la Torres and her racial profiling and verbal harassment of an innocent man.” One Twitter user wrote to Kaiser Permanente saying, “Your employee Liz Elizabeth De La Torres Rodriguez racially profiled a Black man recently and falsely accused him of stealing her son’s phone. There are videos of this posted online. Does she represent the views of your brand?”
MEAWW has not been independently able to verify the identity of the woman.
From what I have found, her name is Liz and she works at the Kaiser off Magnolia in Riverside. The shirt she is wearing is worn at #KaiserPermanente. Hey, @aboutKP who is this woman (Liz) and do you approve of this behavior?
— Max Ehfort (@MaxEhfort) July 14, 2021
Your employee Liz Elizabeth De La Torres Rodriguez racially profiled a Black man recently and falsely accused him of stealing her son’s phone. There are videos of this posted online. Does she represent the views of your brand?
— Kells (@Bei_oochi) July 15, 2021
On Twitter, the official account for Kaiser Permanente wrote, “Thank you for sharing this. This video has been brought to our attention and we are actively investigating it. The conduct in this video does not in any way reflect the views or beliefs of Kaiser Permanente.”
Thank you for sharing this. This video has been brought to our attention and we are actively investigating it. The conduct in this video does not in any way reflect the views or beliefs of Kaiser Permanente.
— Kaiser Permanente (@aboutKP) July 14, 2021
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