The Central Park Karen, Amy Cooper, who called the police on a Black birdwatcher, has lost her lawsuit against her former employer.
The Washington Postreports that a judge threw out the lawsuit on Wednesday, wherein Cooper alleged that the manager at the financial services firm illegally fired her, that the company had defamed her by painting her as a racist, and that she was actually the victim of racial discrimination.
She filed the lawsuit in 2021 against Franklin Templeton, its CEO and president Jenny Johnson, and 10 John Does, saying they portrayed her as “a privileged white female ‘Karen.’”
“Franklin Templeton perpetuated and legitimized the story of ‘Karen’ vs. an innocent African American to its perceived advantage, with reckless disregard for the destruction of Plaintiff’s life in the process,” the suit said, perPeople.
In May 2020, Cooper called 911 after an interaction with Christian Cooper, who was birdwatching in Central Park. Video shows Christian asking Amy to put her dog on a leash because they were in an area of the park where it’s required.
Amy was fired a day after the birdwatching incident. “Following our internal review of the incident in Central Park yesterday, we have made the decision to terminate the employee involved, effective immediately,” her former employer tweeted at the time. “We do not tolerate racism of any kind at Franklin Templeton.”
Franklin Templeton was happy with the judge’s decision, telling the Post, “We continue to believe the company responded appropriately.”
