A woman who identifies herself as a Black Lives Matter activist is facing backlash online after she visited a beauty supply store in Waldorf, Maryland, to urge Black shoppers to join in the ongoing boycott of Asian-owned businesses. The boycott campaign started to gain traction earlier this month following the not-guilty verdict in the Cyrus Carmack-Belton case, a 14-year-old Black teenager who was killed by Asian convenience store owner Chikei Rick Chow in Columbia, South Carolina. Although there have been mixed opinions on the case, some netizens felt that the woman’s approach was not the best way to go.
The woman, who goes by @foxicleopatra, shared the video on TikTok. In the clip, she went into the store and, after scanning the aisles for a short while, raised her voice to address the few Black people inside.
She said, “Hello, everybody. Black women. I’m here to represent the boycott that’s happening for Cyrus Belton… We are boycotting all Asian businesses. So I’m coming here to let y’all know we’re not doing any beauty supply stores. We’re not doing any curries, hibachis, none of that.”
The woman said she came to spread awareness because she believes some people are not aware of the case. She also encouraged Black shoppers to instead spend their money exclusively at Black-owned establishments.
Later in the video, she asked viewers who wanted to support her efforts to donate money through her Cash App to help with the cause.
This is not the first time the activist has promoted the boycott. In a previous TikTok video we covered, she approached customers in an Asian-owned nail salon and pushed the same message.
Maryland Woman’s Boycott Push Draws Criticism
In the comments section under the post, some netizens did not support the boycott movement the woman was pushing for. “That was hard to watch,” one person wrote. Another commented, “Never met u and already tired.” A third said, “Leave people alone some people don’t care.” A fourth asked, “Cash app for what?”
Several people accused the activist of unfairly targeting an entire group of people because of one case. “Does Mr chow own the store?,” one comment asked, wondering why the business is getting dragged into the boycott. Someone else added, “You are literally supporting a stereotype that can harm a lot of Asians, you can’t fight racism with racism.”
One viewer who claimed to be Asian chimed in, “Stop generalizing entire demographics because of the actions of one person. Did anyone boycott white businesses (Ikea, Nike, etc.) during police brutality? Seeing videos of people trolling small Asian restaurants does not help anyone’s cause.”
While there were those who responded negatively to the video, some were not opposed to it. One supporter commented, “I just donated!!!! Keep it up!!!” Another said, “We need more people like u keep doing this.”
Others encouraged the activist to continue promoting Black-owned businesses, with one netizen writing, “You should also hand out a list of Black-owned businesses in the area to help promote and support them! I really like what you’re doing—keep up the great work! 😊”
The verdict in Chow’s case drew national attention and sparked protests from people who believed justice had not been served. According to reports, during the trial, prosecutors argued that Carmack-Belton was shot after being wrongly accused of stealing water and maintained that he never threatened anyone. Defense attorneys, however, contended that Chow acted to protect his son after the teenager allegedly pointed a gun at him. The jury ultimately sided with the defense and found Chow not guilty of murder.
