The head of a skin-care company in San Francisco made an apology on Sunday for calling officers on a person who was writing Black Lives Matter with chalk in front of his own home in the rich Pacific Heights neighborhood, according to CBS San Francisco.
Footage of the confrontation between James Juanillo, who is Filipino, and Lisa Alexander, has since gone viral on social media.
Alexander’s company, LaFace Skincare, has taken its website down.
Following a number of attempts by CBS San Francisco to get in touch with her, she sent the outlet a statement saying:
“I want to apologize directly to Mr. Juanillo. There are not enough words to describe how truly sorry I am for being disrespectful to him last Tuesday when I made the decision to question him about what he was doing in front of his home,” she wrote. “I should have minded my own business. The last 48 hours has taught me that my actions were those of someone who is not aware of the damage caused by being ignorant and naive to racial inequalities.”
“When I watch the video I am shocked and sad that I behaved the way I did,” she continued “It was disrespectful to Mr. Juanillo and I am deeply sorry for that. I did not realize at the time that my actions were racist and have learned a painful lesson. I am taking a hard look at the meaning behind white privilege and am committed to growing from this experience.”
Solidarity ✊🏽: James Juanillo, who is Filipino, was stenciling “Black Lives Matter” w/chalk on Tues. in front of his home when he was confronted by a white couple who called police @AnnieTangent @biblio_phile @PrincipalTam @lin_freda @YehCathery https://t.co/bvPQJvkQh4
— William I. Brown, M.Ed. (@William_I_Brown) June 14, 2020
Juanillo said he was willing to talk about it with Alexander, and she accepted.
“I would love to have coffee with Mr. Juanillo in our neighborhood so I can apologize in person and share a dialogue where I can continue to learn and grow and be a better person.”
After she saw Juanillo stenciling with chalk she decided to call the police.
“She (Alexander) decided to call men with guns because of chalk art,” said Juanillo, who’s lived in the area for 18 years and has his own dog-walking business.
In the video made public by Juanillo, the couple can be heard saying:
“Is this your property?”
“We’re not doing anything illegal,” says the couple.
“Neither am I,” Juanillo says.
“Yes you are, actually, because it’s private property,” says the couple.
“Call the cops,” he says.
“We will do so,” the couple says.
Juanillo told the news station he knows a number of police officers in the neighborhood and says they did not even bother getting out of their car when checking out the call shortly after the recording was made.
And the typical apology has been posted. The video is also accessible via this article. https://t.co/e2bFOoelyv
— William I. Brown, M.Ed. (@William_I_Brown) June 15, 2020
Juanillo said he is a proud gay Filipino who knows the meaning of discrimination.
“This isn’t the first time I’ve experienced fear or even loathing that just kind of creeps out,” he said.
Birchbox, a makeup distribution service, posted a statement on its Instagram account saying it’s “officially cut ties with LaFace, and condemns the actions of Lisa Alexander.”
See the full video below.
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