A young woman from Missouri has been booted out of the United States Air Force after a video of her being racist went viral online.
Tabitha Duncan, 20, was a recent Air Force Reserve recruit, but has been informed that she has been released from her duties after the video went viral, sparking an angry backlash on social media.
Things swiftly got worse for the 20-year-old, who had only been enlisted for a matter of days, as she was also promptly fired from her day job at the Social Bar & Grill in St. Louis.
The footage has been removed by Facebook but is still doing the rounds on Twitter. In the clip, Tabitha can be seen drinking beer in a pickup truck while going along a dirt road with some male companions.
In the video, a male voice can be heard off camera asking Duncan: "So we going n****r hunting today or what?"
The racist slur is repeated by another companion, and the original speaker can be heard repeating the vile question. It was at this point Duncan made the following response: "You get them n*****s."
The Air Force Reserve have now released the following statement in regards to the incident:
"We have been made aware of a video online of an alleged reserve Airman who made racially insensitive comments. We are looking into the matter and we appreciate this being brought to our attention.
"The U.S. Air Force values diversity and inclusion; our Airmen come together to produce an incredible team that can accomplish any mission and overcome any challenge.
"We believe that our greatest asset is our diverse, innovative and technically-savvy workforce. Our Airmen come from all backgrounds and remarks such as these do not fall in line with our culture.
"We take incidents like this very seriously and action will be taken upon further investigation as necessary."
The Social Bar and Grill also released the following statement to River Front Times:
"Social Bar & Grill and its owners have recently become aware of a vile, disgusting, and offensive video made by one of its employees.
"Upon learning of this, Social Bar & Grill immediately terminated this employee as soon as they could reach her!
"The incendiary comments made by this employee absolutely does NOT represent the views, opinions, and policies of Social Bar & Grill and its owners. Nor will they be tolerated in any fashion.
"Social Bar & Grill and its owners continue to encourage and seek diversity in its restaurant."
Speaking with The New York Daily News, Duncan said: "I was underage drinking, and I said something stupid," she added: "I was intoxicated, I have black friends, I have black people in my family. I didn’t mean it. I didn’t know that I was being [recorded]. I am so sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt anybody, I was drunk. I need to seek help."
The 20-year-old then posted a quotation on her personal Facebook page about making mistakes; something which is believed to be in relation to her racist comments.
While Tabitha may churn out the age-old classic of "I have black friends" to excuse her behaviour, both the Air Force and Social Bar & Grill took the action that was needed to deal with this matter.
