The man in a viral video showing him confronting a black woman at a community pool over her ID has reportedly been fired, according to a statement from his former employer.
Jasmine Edwards uploaded video of the incident to Facebook, which she referred to as “a classic case of racial profiling.” In the video, Edwards responds to the man’s requests to see her ID by giving him her address but refusing to show her ID, which prompted the man, identified as Adam Bloom, to call the police.
Bloom was reportedly a member of the local homeowners association and the pool chairman.
As HuffPost points out, the incident occurred on July 4 at a private community pool in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Bloom confronted Edwards in order to get her to prove she is a member. The entrance to the pool is a locked gate that requires a keycard to open. There is no requirement to present an ID to gain access.
“Nobody else was asked to see their ID,” Edwards tells officers in the video. “I feel this is racial profiling. I am the only black person here with my son in the pool.”
Edwards showed police officers who responded to Bloom’s call that she had a working keycard.
“If she has a card to get into the pool, I believe that should be enough,” one of the officers tells Bloom in the video. “It turns green, and it unlocks.”
“They kind of make their way around sometimes,” Bloom responded. “But that’s good enough for me today.”
After the video gained attention across the web, Bloom’s employer, Sonoco Products, apologized to Edwards in a statement and announced that he “is no longer employed by the Company in any respect.”
We are aware of a terrible incident involving the actions of one our employees outside of the workplace, and we have released this statement. pic.twitter.com/vl8Vk4ykoc
— Sonoco (@Sonoco_Products) July 6, 2018
“Our core values at Sonoco are built on dignity and respect for all, and we do not condone discrimination of any kind, inside or outside of the workplace” the statement reads.
The homeowner’s association, of which Bloom is a member, also apologized to Edwards in a statement of their own:
Dear Neighbors,
We sincerely regret that an incident occurred yesterday at our community pool that left neighbors feeling racially profiled. In confronting and calling the police on one of our neighbors, the pool chair escalated a situation in a way that does not reflect the inclusive values Glenridge seeks to uphold as a community.
Our HOA Board has accepted his resignation as pool chair and a board member, effective immediately.
We also have re-instituted a sign-in sheet at the pool to make sure no resident feels singled out again.
And, in the coming days, we will take additional steps to ensure consistent and equitable application of our pool policies and procedures. We apologize to our neighbors who were directly hurt by these actions, and we hope that everyone in Glenridge will join us in redoubling our efforts to care for and support all of our neighbors during this difficult time.
Watch the video below:
Featured image via screen grab
