A video making the rounds on social media shows two patrons at a Florida Burger King telling the manager of the restaurant to “go back to Mexico” because he was speaking Spanish.
The confrontation took place Saturday at the fast food location in Eustis. The patrons, two unidentified women, became upset after they overheard the manager speaking Spanish to another employee, the Palm Beach Post reported.
“This is America,” one woman is heard saying. “Our main language is English.”
“We have freedom of speech, ma’am,” the manager tells her.
“Speak your Mexican at home,” the woman says.
The manager is from Puerto Rico, according to the Post.
The video goes on with the women telling the manager he should speak “American English” in America and to go back to his “Mexican country” if he wants to speak Spanish. The manager calls them prejudiced, ignorant and disrespectful before asking them to leave.
Neyzha Nicole was eating with her boyfriend when she overheard the argument escalate.
“When I heard, ‘You cannot speak Spanish in public,’ I grabbed my phone and I was like, ‘Hold up,'” Nicole told NBC News.
She said she started filming because she wanted to expose the women and felt like they wanted attention. She also wanted to intervene but didn’t want to heat up the situation.
Nicole, who is also Puerto Rican and can speak English and Spanish, said she is not surprised by the incident and that it’s something that happens “on a daily basis.”
“There are people that can speak other languages, they shouldn’t feel discriminated in their country, they should be proud they can learn another language and contact more people,” she said.
A Burger King spokesperson told NBC News in a statement that there is “no place for discrimination” in its restaurants.
“We expect employees and guests to treat each other with respect,” the statement read. “This incident took place at a franchised restaurant and the owner is looking into the matter.”
Source link : https://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/florida-eustis-burger-king-manager-told-to-go-back-to-mexico-viral-video/128086/?amp=1
Author :
Publish date : 2019-07-10 03:00:00
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.
