UPDATE: This post has been updated to include comments from the woman in the video, Kelly Pocha.
A viral video showing a woman hurling racist remarks at a table of men at a Lethbridge, Alberta Denny’s is being condemned by the city’s mayor.
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The video, which was posted on Facebook and Twitter, shows a woman sitting next to a man at a booth inside the restaurant; she is facing a group of at least three men at the next table and berating them, seemingly because she doesn’t believe they are Canadian.
“Shut your fucking mouth then, ‘cause you know what? You’re dealing with a Canadian woman right now and I will leap across this table and punch you right in your fucking mouth,” the woman, Kelly Pocha of Cranbrook, BC, says as the video starts.
“You’re a fucking ignorant prick, is what you are,” she continues, as one of the men laughs.
“Ahahaha, yeah you’re fucking funny. Go back to your fucking country,” Pocha says.
In response, one of the men, seen on camera calmly drinking what appears to be water, says “Don’t say that… Just respect, don’t say like that.”
The man seated with the angry woman instructs the table of men to “relax.”
Pocha goes on to repeat that she is Canadian, to which one of the men says “We’re all Canadians. We’re all the same, you’re a human being, I’m a human being, there’s nothing special about you.”
Pocha insists the men are not Canadian and asks if they pay taxes. One of the men responds, “fucking of course I pay taxes.”
“Oh everybody pays taxes really? You do? You were born and raised here? Not all your friends pay taxes here,” Pocha retorts.
Near the end of the clip, she climbs up in her booth to fully turn around and face them.
“You’re not dealing with one of your Syrian bitches right now. You’re dealing with a Canadian woman and I’m not going to be talked down to by you,” she says. “You laugh all you want. That’s a prime example of why we don’t want you here.”
According to Lethbridge News Now, the incident took place April 21.
The man who posted the video, Monir Omerzai, indicated on Facebook that he was one of the men being attacked and that cops and restaurant staff asked his group to leave before asking the woman to leave. Lethbridge police told VICE they would provide more details on the incident later today.
Speaking to Lethbridge News Now, Pocha said she was having an “off” day. She said she had been drinking when she and her husband went into the Denny’s and that she heard the men “talking in their own language.” She said she thought they were mocking her.
“It started with a look. I turned around and looked at the one gentleman and he was staring at me. And I said is there a problem? And he said, ‘no, no problem’,” she told the outlet. But she said one of the men kept looking at her and “then they all started laughing at me. And that’s basically when things started to get said. I normally don’t get that angry, I have to get provoked.”
Pocha admitted her comments were racist and claimed “if I could take it back, I would. But I can’t.” She said she’s upset about her rant going viral.
“I don’t know how to handle this kind of attention.”
The Denny’s manager, who hung up before giving his name, said his staff called police and he believes police escorted both parties out of the restaurant, however he said he was not working at the time.
Lethbridge Mayor Chris Spearman described the incident as racist and embarrassing in a Facebook post.
“We are working hard to address racism and bigotry but can not prevent ignorance and the hostile behaviour of individuals. Most Lethbridge citizens are proud of our reputation as a city that welcomes immigrants and refugees,” Spearman wrote, going on to name several local initiatives that support immigrants, including a newly expanded Lethbridge Family Services, an Islamic Centre, and a multi-cultural centre.
Denny’s head office has not yet responded to VICE’s request for comment.
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