Three Black women say they were out for a morning run at Dockweiler State Beach in Playa Del Rey when they were subjected to a racist verbal attack.
Footage of a portion of the Sunday incident, which has gone viral, shows the woman in question on the phone in an attempt to get police on the scene.
"I need a paramedic," she's heard saying. "I need an ambulance. My environment has been harmed by this African Black person. … This African, Black lies!" The woman then claims that she was "just attacked" from behind, with the women heard swiftly correcting her.
"You Africans are so fucking violent," the woman is heard saying in one clip. When asked why she had previously used the n-word prior to the footage being taken, the woman responds with, "You're an African, okay?" While on the phone, the woman—who is not wearing a mask—is also heard attempting to make the incident centered on keeping six feet apart.
Speaking with a regional Los Angeles-area CBS outlet, the group of friends who were targeted in the incident—identified as Brittany, Jessyka, and Raquel—revealed they have now filed a hate incident report with police.
"She said, 'Black lives don't matter, your life doesn't matter, you need to go back to Africa,'" Brittany told reporters of their initial encounter with the woman, now widely being referred to on social media as the latest "Karen" example. "She said, 'I'll get you the cheapest flight back to Africa.'"
After this, the friends said they decided to get the woman on video when they crossed paths again.
In sharing the footage, the three women said they are hoping to encourage others to confront other racist incidents of this nature in the same fashion.
Sadly, this year has seen no shortage of emboldened racism being caught on camera. In recent months, the "Karen" qualifier has also been used for those who—often violently—refuse to wear masks or otherwise follow social distancing guidelines.