Reckless Driver Mocks Asian American Woman With Racist Insults on Instagram, Loses Her Job

June 30, 2020

A victim of a vehicular accident in California was later targeted with racist attacks by the very person who hit her car.

Xandra Garlejo was driving home for Father’s Day weekend on June 19, when her car was hit by another vehicle along the intersection of Parkdale Blvd. and Mira Mesa Blvd. in San Diego.

Based on the account of the victim’s sister on Facebook, the female driver who hit her reportedly ran a red light.

“My sister was driving home last Friday night/Saturday morning for Father’s Day weekend when she was hit by the girl (in the video on the right) who ran a red light,” wrote Sarah Jayne Garlejo.

(To view the videos below, you must click on the Facebook post and watch through the social media platform.)

“While my sister is thankfully okay and we were going about the process as you normally would (insurance claim, doctor visit) the girl who hit my sister proceeded to her IG live the following day to call my sister a ‘f*cking ching chong lady’ and also insults my sister’s integrity.”

Sarah shared that following the crash, the woman did not ask if her sister was okay. The woman also reportedly did not apologize or even look or talk to the Garlejo family at the time of the accident.

“She did not really talk to me or acknowledge that she was in the wrong,” Xandra told NextShark in an interview. “We only exchanged information. I did ask her ‘why did you run the red light?’ and she said ‘I don’t know’ with a shrug and walked away. That was the only interaction I had with her during the accident. When my family arrived at the scene of the accident, she did not even look or talk to my family. Then, when the police said it was okay for us to go, she quickly got into her car and drove off without saying a word to my family and I.”

According to Xandra, she was shocked upon watching the racist slurs posted by the woman with a friend on Instagram Live.

“I couldn’t believe it was actually being used towards my family and I. Growing up and living in Mira Mesa, I was raised to know what cultural diversity is and really appreciate it. I was really surprised, then mad because of how disrespectful and unnecessary it was ALSO after the fact of her being at fault for hitting my car because she was reckless and ran a red light.”

“She had the audacity to insult me (and Asian Americans) by calling me a ‘f*cking ching chong lady.’ Not only did she hit my car, but that accident could have easily taken my life if it happened even a split second later. During these times of racial injustice coming to light, I would expect better from most, however, that was not the case with her. I am not sharing this story to advocate further hate or violence, but to shed light on our experience with racial injustices and hopefully reckless and racist acts like this will no longer go without consequences.

Sarah said she was compelled to share her sister’s experience on social media to bring light on acts of racism.

“I was really amazed at how many people came through with unwavering love and support. I couldn’t thank everyone enough,” she noted.

Sarah’s post became widely shared and eventually reached Amazing Lash Studio Redlands, the reckless driver’s employer. In its Instagram statement, the eyelash studio terminated her employment.

Feature Image via Sarah Jayne Garlejo

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