MEAWW.COM / NEWS / HUMAN INTEREST

Florida man who told elderly woman to 'back the f*** up' for asking him to wear a mask fired by his employer

Dozens of social media users took to Twitter to slam the White man for yelling 'I feel threatened' and charging towards an elderly woman after she asked to him to wear a mask

Shortly after a video of a Florida man screaming at an elderly woman at a Costo store in Fort Myers was posted on social media, the phrase "I feel threatened" began trending on Twitter on Tuesday morning, July 7. Dozens of social media users took to Twitter to slam the White man for yelling "I feel threatened" and charging towards an elderly woman after she asked to him to wear a mask.

The man was later identified as Dan Maples by Twitter users as they established that he worked at Ted Todd Insurance. Hours after social media users called on the insurance company to fire him, the company released a statement announcing Maples' termination. "Threatening behaviour and intimidation go against our mission to be trusted advisors in our community. We are also committed to immediately reviewing our internal existing culture at TTI. We ask that further feedback be sent to HR@tedtoddinsurance.com Charley Todd, CEO." "Thank you to everyone for their comments and messages raising awareness about a former employee at Ted Todd Insurance. Their behavior in the video is in direct conflict with our company values and their employment has been terminated," the statement added.

In the viral video, Maples can be seen wearing a red 'Running the World Since 1776' shirt, a reference to the American Revolutionary War, screams an expletive-laden tirade at the customer in the Gulf Coast Town Center. He also approaches the elderly lady and man believed to be defending her in a threatening manner with his fist clenched as he tells them to back off. "You're harassing me?" he says as he clenches his fists, to which the man with the lady replies: "I'm not harassing you, you're coming close to me." The man without the mask then yells again saying: "I feel threatened, I feel threatened! Back up! Threaten me again! Back the f*** up, put your f***ing phone down." According to Twitter reports, Maples was later escorted out of the store. 

The shocking video was shared on Twitter by Billy Corben, who wrote: "Florida man at Fort Myers Costco in "Running the World Since 1776" shirt flips out on elderly woman who asked him to wear a mask and man who defended her #BecauseFlorida (via @profjaffar)."

Several other also joined in asking for Costco to ban the man from entering their stores. "Okay. I’ve had just about enough of this crap.. @Costco ban this unhinged shitpig & report him. And how has Twitter not identified this steaming pile already???" While another wrote: "Screams “I feel threatened!” while threateningly storming towards an unarmed man with clenched fists? Human Garbage."

"The amount of arrogance and persecution play acting on display here is sickening. Literally puffing your chest and *screaming* ‘i feel threatened!’ while advancing on someone who seems calm. Why cant we put THESE people in cages, instead of brown people?" a third added.

Some Twitter users also claimed that the words "I feel threatened" is generally used by police officers. "If you’re wondering “I FEEL THREATENED” is what cops are taught to say just before killing unarmed men, women, and children. It’s a feature of their training, not a bug," a user wrote. Another speculated whether the man yelling was a police officer: "I'm pretty sure this is a cop. His comments make it obvious. Back up. I feel threatened. They literally teach those phrases in the academy. He's a cop."

"I feel threatened" is what police officers with guns have said for years as a justification for killing unarmed Black people," another added.

One user pointed at Florida's 'Stand your ground' laws, stating: "New trick the thugs are learning, yelling “I feel threatened” while charging toward someone. They believe it gives them a legal defense to go on the offensive, especially in “stand your ground” states."

One of the customers who was among the people targeted at the store reportedly said: "To give Costco the credit, they escorted him out and made me wait inside and monitored him until he left and then they sent someone with me to the car to make sure I'm okay."