‘What you recording for?’: A woman screamed racial slurs at EMS workers on historic Black Wall Street, and tried to hit two of them

A video posted to Instagram by a local hip-hop artist who goes by @god117 shows a woman repeatedly using a racial slur while yelling at EMS workers, police and bystanders near Durham, North Carolina’s historic Black Wall Street district, according to Atlanta Black Star. “Get the f*** out of here, p*** a** n*****,” the woman screamed at a Black EMS worker as he tried to assist her, then swung at him and a female coworker, missing both.

A Black man in the crowd stepped between the group and the woman, trying to calm her through words and gestures, but she remained unfazed. She continued using the slur while arguing with people nearby, wearing a medical boot on one foot. Her identity and ethnicity have not been publicly confirmed, and other outlets covering the video described her as appearing intoxicated.

The incident followed an alleged altercation near Parrish Street, the historic business district known as Black Wall Street, though details of what prompted the initial 911 call weren’t available. A second video, posted the following Monday, shows several officers struggling to handcuff the woman as she resisted before she was eventually brought to the ground. No charges against her have been reported.

What the law actually covers here

Under North Carolina General Statute § 14-401.14, it’s a Class 1 misdemeanor to assault someone or threaten to do so because of their race, color, religion, nationality or country of origin. It’s punishable by up to 120 days in jail. Separately, North Carolina General Statute § 14-34.6 makes it a Class A1 misdemeanor, the most serious misdemeanor tier in the state, to assault or engage in an affray with an EMT or other emergency medical responder carrying out their duties.

That rises to a felony if the assault causes physical injury or involves a weapon. Neither statute requires the alleged victim to have actually been struck; an attempted assault, like the swing described in the video, can qualify on its own.

Black Wall Street refers to the Parrish Street business district that became a nationally recognized center of Black-owned enterprise in Durham in the early 1900s. It was home to institutions including North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company and Mechanics and Farmers Bank, according to NCpedia, a state-run history resource. The district flourished for decades before much of it was demolished during 1960s urban renewal projects tied to highway construction.

The video is circulating as Durham’s police department is under new leadership. Stephanie Mardis, the department’s first Black woman to serve as chief, officially began the role on Sept. 8 and was formally sworn in during a ceremony on Sept. 18. She has said building community trust is a top priority.