A judge in Baton Rouge, Louisiana allegedly used racism to intimidate a Black woman. According to The Rouge Collection, the incident occurred on Feb. 3 at Sammy’s Grill restaurant.
Kaneitra Johnson and her friends were waiting at the bar when they began to speak with a Lyft driver. At some point, the Lyft driver got up from the bar to use the restroom. Johnson decided to sit down until he returned. However, the Lyft driver allowed Johnson to continue sitting once he returned. The two shared the seat until the Lyft driver told Johnson he was about to leave the bar. But before he walked away, Judge Mike Erwin shared his racist views with the Lyft driver.
“You never give up your seat for a n—-r,” Judge Erwin told the Lyft driver. “You should have made her get her fat n—-r a– up.”
The Lyft driver told Judge Erwin that the seat did not belong to anyone before leaving the bar. Johnson called the police and she found out that the racist man was a judge in Louisiana’s 19th Judicial District Court. The police never reprimanded Judge Erwin for his language and the managers at Sammy’s Grill allowed him to stay at the bar.
Johnson shared her ordeal on Facebook and the post soon went viral. After it went viral, the manager at Sammy Grill said that Erwin will be banned from the restaurant.
However, Judge Erwin has proved to be an inadequate choice to serve as a judge. After espousing racist and misogynistic views, he should not be allowed to determine the fate of citizens. If Judge Erwin doesn’t believe Black women should not have the right to sit down at a bar, it’s likely that he would take away the freedom of Black people who come into his courtroom accused of minor offenses.
Judge Erwin has yet to speak out on the matter.
