‘Karen’ calls 911 after she was prohibited from entering a pet store for not wearing a mask.
A woman called the authorities after she was denied entry to the store. She claimed that she has a religious exemption right and God-given right that is protected under the Civil Rights Act.
On Sunday, Aidan Bearpaw, who works at Bones-N-Scones in Palm Springs, recorded the encounter and posted it on social media, saying; “I’ve never had to deal with a Karen calling 911 on me before all because I asked her to please wear a mask in the store.”
The video showed that Bearpaw kept asking the lady to wear a mask inside the shop, but the woman threatened to the police, saying that he is discriminating against her and that she can’t cover her face because of medical issues.
The woman asked Bearpaw to accommodate her by giving her an hour at the end of the day. When she was barred, she said, “There is no one in the store,” on which Bearpaw replied: “There’s me in the store,” to which she responds, “So you stand 7,000 feet away from me.”
She said that she cannot cover her face with the mask because she will freak out and she will have a panic attack.
After being barred, she called 911 and told the dispatcher that; Under the 1964 Civil Rights Act, she cannot be discriminated against; she has a right to breathe O2, not CO2. While talking to the dispatch, she also added that she was asked to wear a mask, although she has a religious exemption right and a God-given right as well as a medical issue.
On which the dispatcher told the woman that there is a city ordinance mandating wearing masks inside the store, and the store owner has a full right to refuse service, and then she told her she is sending an officer to the site. To which the woman said that she does not need an officer anymore and head back to the car.
Bearpaw said that the lady sends the officer again the next day. He said that his boss was furious at him, and he was afraid that he might get fired, but his coworkers supported him. Even Bones-N-Scones’ consulting general manager backed Bearpaw up.