Viral video of firing by racist Macy's manager was a 'prank' | Fact check
The claim: A Macy's manager fired an employee for being late and told her, 'We're not running on Black people time'
A June 16 Instagram video (direct link, archive link) shows a group standing inside an elevator as two people, identified as a manager and an employee, start to argue.
The manager, a white man, tells the employee, a Black woman, that she is fired for being late. Although the woman says she had a family emergency and that her grandmother passed away, the manager insists that she get off the elevator and turn in her name tag and work items.
“Yeah, we’re not running on Black people time. Get off the elevator,” he says. "This isn't the ghetto."
The caption, which appears to have been written by the former employee, refers to the video as "proof this Macy’s manger is hella racist and have no heart for him to say this to me (sic)."
The supposed former employee also posted the video on TikTok, and it was shared by others on Facebook and in a viral post on X, formerly Twitter.
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Our rating: False
Macy’s confirmed in public statements and a direct statement to USA TODAY that the two people in the video were actors and not affiliated with the company. The woman, who has since been identified, also said in a video that the incident was a prank.
Actress involved in prank has been identified in headlines before
After the video spread on social media platforms, Macy’s responded that the individuals were not associated with the company.
“This is a stunt. The individuals featured in the video are not affiliated with or work at Macy’s,” the company said in a June 17 X post, writing in a follow-up post that the people were actors.
Julissa Bonfante, a Macy’s spokesperson, told USA TODAY the company conducted a thorough investigation and found the incident to be “fully fabricated.”
“Macy’s and our colleagues were not involved in any aspect of the video. We find this video racist, divisive and hurtful,” Bonfante said.
The woman who appeared in the video and posted it to Instagram and TikTok is an actress named Zaida Pugh. She posted a June 20 follow-up video to her social media accounts in which she started out with an “update” about the incident. But then she broke character, confirming that it wasn’t real.
“Gotcha! You’ve been pranked,” Pugh says in the video update. “Yes, it’s a prank. Macy’s wasn’t lying. Macy’s is an awesome store, I have nothing against Macy’s. Please continue shopping there.”
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In 2016, Pugh made headlines for a “social experiment” in which she held a container of live crickets and worms on a subway. Huff Post reported that a young man knocked the bugs out of her hands, causing the bugs to go flying and the passengers to panic. In comments to CBS News, she said the stunt was intended to show what homeless people go through.
USA TODAY reached out to Pugh for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Our fact-check sources:
Julissa Bonfante, June 21, Email exchange with USA TODAY
Macy's, June 17, X post
Macy's, June 17, X post
VICE, Aug. 30, 2016, The Woman Who Threw Bugs on the Subway Has a Few Regrets
queenzaida, June 19, Instagram post
HuffPost, Aug. 27, 2016, Woman Who Unleashed Crickets On NYC Train Says It Was All A 'Prank'
CBS News, Aug. 27, 2016, Woman Who Released Crickets, Worms On Subway Says It Was Social Experiment
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Viral video of firing by Macy's manager was a 'prank' | Fact check
