Houston Family Dollar employee's alleged remarks spark viral moment and corporate response
Confrontation at Houston Family Dollar goes viral on TikTok
An alleged offensive conversation by a Family Dollar employee has gone viral on social media, leading to consequences for the employee. FOX 26's Jonathan Mejia spoke to the customer seen confronting the employee in a viral TikTok video.
HOUSTON - An alleged offensive conversation by a Family Dollar employee has gone viral on social media, leading to consequences for the employee.
Family Dollar customer discusses viral video
Deon "Chico" Young spoke with FOX 26's Jonathan Mejia about his viral video after advising Family Dollar employee to watch what they say and how they say it. Young says the employee made derogatory comments about Black people in Spanish without realizing that he was Cuban and understood her conversation.
Confrontation goes viral
What we know:
Deon "Chico" Young was shopping at a Family Dollar on Jensen Drive and Laura Koppe Drive Road when he overheard an employee allegedly telling another customer in Spanish that Black people only come to the store to steal.
Young, who is Afro-Latino, understood the conversation due to his fluency in English, Spanish, and French. He recounted the incident, saying the employee made derogatory remarks about Black people stealing shoes.
The viral video, which has garnered over 240,000 views and 50,000 likes on TikTok, shows Young confronting the employee, telling her to be mindful of her words as he is Cuban and understands Spanish.
"Watch what you're saying"
What they're saying:
Young emphasized the importance of being aware of who might understand conversations in different languages, noting that assumptions based on appearance can lead to offensive situations.
"Because you see me as a Black man, and you speak another language, doesn’t mean I don’t know what you’re saying. And that’s my whole thing. Watch what you’re saying, because you never know who understands you, and you never know who you offend," Young said.
What's next:
Family Dollar reached out to Young to apologize and informed him that the employee would be fired. FOX 26 attempted to contact corporate for a statement but did not receive a response in time for this report.
The Source: FOX 26's Jonathan Mejia spoke exclusively with Deon "Chico" Young.