Costco Karen throws tantrum refusing to wear mask at a Hillsboro, Oregon outlet, exclaiming that she is an American and that she has constitutional rights amid the coronavirus crises.
Here we go again. A woman dubbed ‘Costco Karen’ has been filmed on video sitting on the floor of the supermarket, refusing to move, insisting ‘I have constitutional rights!’ after she was asked to put on a face mask amid the ongoing coronavirus.
The unfolding scene took place at a returns desk of a Costco in Hillsboro, Oregon, with video showing an employee asking an older woman to wear a mask in the store in a bid to uphold its health policy as the pandemic continues to sweep the United States.
The woman had a face mask dangling from one ear but refused to put it on completely to cover her mouth.
‘You just have to tell me that you have one. Well, then you have to wear it. You have to wear your mask in public. This is private property,’ a female employee tells the un-identified woman in the video which was posted on June 30.
‘I am not a member of Costco,’ the woman retorts.
Costco Karen is by far my favorite Karen pic.twitter.com/GUL5jDoO1e
— Ana Bretón (@missbreton) July 2, 2020
‘Want me to get that taken care of for you? Well, then you’re going to have to put your mask on,’ the employee responds.
‘I will not,’ the woman says, adding the mask requirement is ‘your problem’.
‘Well then come back another time,’ the employee says.
‘I want to speak to your boss,’ the outraged elderly woman replies.
‘He’s gonna require the same. If you want to step outside here I’ll have him come meet you outside. You need to do that it’s our policy. We’re going to walk outside,’ the employee says.
The woman is heard admitting that she does not have a medical condition that could make it unsafe for her to wear a mask.
But instead of following the employee, Costco Karen unexpectedly sits on the floor cross legged in protest.
‘I am an American. I have constitutional rights!’
‘Can I get you a chair outside? There’s a place to sit. Want me to help you up?’ the store employee is heard saying.
The woman in turn gets up only to sit in another place on the main floor of the store, further away from shoppers, all the while refusing to leave the store.
Shoppers leaving the store are seen maneuvering around the woman.
At the end of the clip the manager is seen walking towards her saying: ‘Hello what can I do for you?’
It’s not clear what she wanted to do in store, but the manager repeatedly asked if she had a membership to the store.
‘I am an American. I have constitutional rights!’ Costco Karen angrily says before the camera cuts off.
Constitutional individual rights vs collective rights?
The claim of constitutional rights has been an ongoing rally cry amongst naysayers who maintain even in the face of a health pandemic their individual constitutional rights must continue to carry weight and cede any or all ‘illegitimate’ demands that preempt individual’s rights and movements, including right to assembly- a point of view which has left many saying has served to only exacerbate the ongoing public health crises.
The recent ‘incident’ follows Costco initiating a policy requiring all customers to wear face masks which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) say is an effective way to reduce the spread of the contagious COVID-19.
The video comes as the US is seeing a resurgence of cases in some states after reopening and lifting coronavirus lockdown orders.
As of July 6 there are over 10, 230 cases of COVID-19 in Oregon and and over 215 deaths.
Nationally there are just on 3 million coronavirus cases and just under 133K deaths fatalities from the deadly virus.
