Angry Woman at Michaels Store Cries Discrimination for Being White, Voting Trump: Video

CHICAGO, IL — The offer of a $1 reusable bag erupted into a meltdown by a woman who proclaimed she had voted for Donald Trump and was being discriminated against by African-American employees at a Chicago arts and crafts store.

• Also See: Woman In Michaels Video Is Repeat Ranter (Yes, More Video)

The incident happened on Thanksgiving Eve at the Michaels store at 3131 N. Clark St. in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood. A video shot by Jessie Grady titled “Racist White Woman Trump Rant in Chicago Store” has received more than 57,000 views on YouTube since being posted on Nov. 23.

As of Monday afternoon, a GoFundMe campaign established by Grady for the Michaels clerk had raised $6,700. The goal was $400.

Grady said she had just gone through the checkout line at Michaels and was standing at the exit showing her 2-year-old child a Christmas ornament. According to Grady, the customer, who is white, went into a “30-minute racist rant complete with yelling and cursing and repeated references to the fact that both employees were African-American."

Warning: Graphic language and profanity

The customer says in the video that the store associate was trying to “force me” into buying a reusable bag for her larger items.

“Yes, I voted for Trump, so there. You want to kick me out because of that? And look who won,” the customer said.

Grady said the yelling had been going on for several minutes before she started recording the confrontation on video because she wanted to document it for store employees to “keep them from getting in trouble for no reason” because “the customer is always right.”

In the video, the customer can be heard telling the Michaels employee “you want to discriminate against me and name call me?” The customer also starts recording the employee on video.

“What, you don’t want to be videoed? You don’t want to be on TV,” she says.

The customer also confronts Grady when she notices Grady recording her. The woman also accuses Grady’s 2-year-old child of stealing store merchandise.

“I don’t know what you think you’re videoing, lady,” the customer says. “I was just discriminated against by two black women and you being a white woman and you literally thinking that’s OK … why don’t you go home to your husband who’s cheating on you.”

The African-American store manager can also be heard calmly telling the woman to stop using profanity because there are children present.

“This woman [the cashier] screamed at me across the [deleted] store like an animal … you’re an animal … I told you as the manager to reprimand … Michael is going to hear about this first thing Friday morning,” the customer says.

Grady said multiple customers and store security had called police during the tirade. By the time police arrived, the customer had already left the store. Throughout the confrontation, Grady said the Michaels employees were professional and courteous.

“There were about 10 customers standing with the manager and most of (us) stayed the entire 45 mins to make sure we spoke to the police,” Grady said via email.

Grady was so upset by the incident that she started the GoFundMe campaign because the store manager, who took the brunt of the customer’s anger, has three children and Grady wanted to make the family’s holidays a little brighter.

“I’d like to do something to try to make it up to the employee who was the main target of this racist attack. I’d like to show her that many people are horrified by how this woman treated her, and that we stand with her and appreciate her hard work. She inspired me because despite the hateful words that were being hurled in her direction, she stood in that entrance way calm and unmoving to protect her staff and customers ... In the current climate I believe it’s very important that we go out of our way to treat each other with dignity, kindness and politeness, and that we stand up for each other when we see people being mistreated.”

As of Sunday evening, the GoFundMe account was at $1,140. A call to Michaels' corporate headquarters in Irving, Texas, was not immediately returned.