‘I Don’t Live in the Hood, Brotha’: White Pennsylvania Man Fired from City Job After Calling Black Delivery Driver Racial Slur In Viral Video
A Pennsylvania man caught on camera hurling racial slurs and derogatory remarks at a Black delivery driver was immediately dismissed from his city job after video of the confrontation started circulating online. The now-former public works employee for Swissvale, a borough in western Pennsylvania, was seen approaching a Black box truck driver around 5 a.m. on Nov. 5, yelling racial slurs and threatening to fight him. The box truck driver, Ross King Jr., recorded the confrontation on his cell phone. A Swissvale, Pennsylvania, city worker was caught on camera calling a delivery driver the N-word. (Photo: Facebook/RJ King) In the footage, the man is seen approaching King as he's sitting in his vehicle, calling him the N-word twice, then accusing him of being afraid to get out of his truck to face him head-on. When King tells him he has problems, the man says, "I live on a golf course. I don't live in the hood, brotha." ‘He Picked the Wrong One’: Viral Video Shows White Man Challenging Black Security Guard at DMV, and Instantly Regretting It He continues shouting at King as he walks away. “He’s making these comments, ‘I live on a golf course, you’re from the hood,’ and I’m just like, dude, you don’t even know who I am”, King told WPXI. King recounted what happened before the dispute started. He said he was sitting in his box truck early that morning, waiting for USPS to open so he could make a delivery. The former employee approached him and ordered him to move the truck. King said that he started recording as the confrontation escalated because he feared for his safety. "There was no reason for me to get out of that truck because, like I said, before I started recording, who knows, he could’ve had a gun, he could’ve had a knife, and it could’ve ended up bad," King said. He added that the man even moved his car and parked it in front of his truck during the dispute. That same day, the man was fired from his public works job. Swissvale borough officials did not release his identity, but confirmed he was let go in a statement on the borough's official Facebook page for news and information. “Many members of the public are aware of an incident that occurred yesterday morning between a Swissvale Borough employee and another motorist. During this encounter, the Swissvale employee used threatening and racist language against the other person. This behavior does not reflect the values of Swissvale Council and Staff and will not be tolerated. The employee is no longer employed by the borough. Swissvale took immediate action upon becoming aware of this incident and will continue to work toward building a better Swissvale and ensuring that this type of behavior does not occur in the future." Borough council members said they received numerous calls, emails, and texts from residents as the video made the rounds on social media. Several people called for swift and immediate action, including a state representative. Swissvale Borough Council President Christopher Ansell called the man's actions "racist," "dehumanizing," and "appalling." “We have to show that there’s a no-tolerance policy, that there will be discipline,” Ansell told WTAE. “We love our workforce, but we have an extremely high standard. If you want to come to work in Swissvale, you don’t bring that garbage with you,” said City Councilman Kevin Hanes. Councilwoman Angela Stribling said she personally spoke to King, who walked her through what happened. “He has a business, and he was just delivering for his business, and he just parked there," Stribling explained. "The guy come driving down the street erratically and just approached him to move in a leadership manner which he didn’t have that position to do so."
