A Pennsylvania man was filmed using a racial slur against a black child and threatening to choke him. When police arrived, they appeared to excuse the man’s alleged behavior.
The incident reportedly happened in Ridley Township in Folsom, Pennsylvania. According to claims shared online, the boy was riding bikes with his friends when they got in the man’s way. The man then allegedly singled out the black kid and confronted him.
The video began with the man telling the boy, “Get the [expletive] out of the way.” He then used a racial slur against him, saying, “You are a [expletive] stupid little [n-word].” The footage then showed the man speaking with police officers who arrived at the scene.
The man explained the situation to the officers and repeated that he had cursed at the kid and his friends. He then repeated the racial slur while telling the officers that “he was acting like a [expletive] [n-word].” The officers did not appear to reprimand the man for his use of the racial slur.
The boy then interrupted the man and asked what else he had said. The man admitted to the officers that he had told the child he was going to choke him and his parents. One of the other children then told an officer that the man’s statement was a threat.
Another part of the video appeared to show one of the officers excusing the man’s behavior. She told the boy, “that’s the kind of reaction you are going to get,” seemingly referring to the kids’ use of their bikes. The officer clarified that she was not saying the man’s behavior was right, but she believed that both sides were in the wrong.
A separate version of the video was shared on YouTube and included additional footage. In that version, the officer was speaking to the children and mentioned that they were wrong for circling the man with their bikes. Since this additional claim was not shown in the footage captured at the scene, it remains unconfirmed. Accounts shared online alleged that the police did not take action against the man despite the threats he allegedly made and the racist language he used.
Viewers Slam Pennsylvania Man After Using Racial Slur
The video sparked reactions online. Many viewers criticized the Pennsylvania man over his use of a racial slur against the black child. Several people argued that, as an adult, he should not have targeted the child in that manner. “Bet he wouldn’t talk to a grown man like that‼” one person wrote. Another person argued, “Oddly being a bigot & raciest in America is not illegal. If he had laid hands on the child then you can do something.”
Other viewers also criticized the police for allegedly failing to take action against the man. “Black family these are not police officers. These are what you call race soldiers who have no right with a badge. This white supremacist should be charged with a hate crime against a minor and he threaten to kill his family. Remind you that he said all of this to the cop,” one person wrote. Another person said, “Man let that been my kid the emergency services coming for his fake tough [expletive]. That cop co signing that [expletive] weak [expletive] in uniform.”
Whatever led up to the confrontation, many viewers felt there was no justification for directing a racial slur or an alleged threat toward a kid. For others, the biggest frustration was that the encounter appeared to end without the consequences they expected, leaving them questioning how differently things might have played out had an adult been on the receiving end.
