A black couple was shocked to their core when a contractor pulled up to their Atlanta home with an enormous Confederate flag flying off the back of his truck.
A black couple was shocked when a contractor pulled up to their Atlanta home with an enormous Confederate flag flying off the back of his truck.
Allison and Zeke Brown had hired the man to fix the brakes on their golf cart after finding him on Facebook Marketplace. He seemed fine — until he showed up with the flag in tow.
They were so taken aback by the flag, they immediately fired him, however, in a moment captured on the couple's doorbell camera.
“Hi, you know what, I do apologize, I know you’ve come from a very long way, but we’re going to use someone else,” Allison tells the man, who's identified only as Michael.
“She’s upset with the flag,” Zeke says.
“No, I’m beyond upset with the flag,” Allison adds.
Michael, the contractor, then offers to remove the flag to allay them.
"No, you don't need to take it down," Allison replies. "You can continue to believe what you need to believe, sir. But no, I cannot pay you for your services. Thank you, have a good day."
Asked about the decision to fire Michael, the couple told Inside Edition they didn't think twice.
"This is easy," said Allison. "We can control where we spend our money ... and it will not go to someone promoting such hate."
"I was just a little surprised that a gentlemen this young was riding around with a symbol of hate," added Zeke.
Allison is being praised for the way she handled the situation, keeping calm while standing firm.
She was brilliant!
— Shopgirl ???☮️ (@idnac4u) July 2, 2019
I applaud her calm demeanor ??
FACT:
No thoughtful human being should employ this guy... regardless of what race you are. Saving a few dollars isn’t worth losing your humanity.
GOOD FOR HER! And she was incredibly polite about it to boot. pic.twitter.com/pxPlTVx9hM
— R. LaPointe (@lapointe67) July 2, 2019
"What I did not want to do is promote this 'angry black female narrative' that's out there," Allison said.
Michael later reached out to Zeke, writing, “I didn’t know the flag offended y’all.”
“Yes, it is extremely offensive to anyone of color," Zeke responded. "I understand it is part of American history, but that flag stood for a time in history where people such as myself had a very bad way of life."
He added: "Micheal, I hope this small interaction causes you to do a little research on how several Americans feel about the Confederacy. I know it’s part of history, so is Nazi Germany...”
Speaking to Yahoo Lifestyle, Michael said he is a "redneck" and maintained the flag is an adornment for the Fourth of July.
“My little siblings bought it from a flea market,” he said. “I don’t support slavery and neither do my siblings. But I am not going to take it down when my siblings asked me to fly it.
"If [the family] wants to take offense, they can.”
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