White people are having a really hard time with being told no. If it’s not inexplicable efforts to protest a quarantine order to keep people safe from the virus, it’s people like Shelley Luther who won’t let a pandemic stop them from going full Karen.
Luther was sentenced to a week in jail on Tuesday after refusing to close her Dallas, Texas, salon during quarantine according to Buzzfeed News. She re-opened her salon on April 24, almost a month into the stay-at-home order issued by the county. Judge Eric Moyé told Luther that her actions were selfish.
“The society cannot function when one’s own belief in a concept of liberty permits you to flaunt your disdain for the rulings of duly elected officials,” Moyé said. He told her that it was her decision to go to jail. All she had to do was express remorse and close the salon.
It was here Luther played whatever is the Karen equivalent of M.O.P’s “Ante Up,” and tried to boss up.
“I have to disagree with you, sir, when you say I’m selfish, because feeding my kids is not selfish. I have hairstylists that are going hungry because they’d rather feed their kids. So, sir, if you think the law is more important than kids being fed, then go ahead with your decision, because I’m not going to shut the salon.” Luther said. After that, Luther was taken into custody.
In addition to the week in jail, the salon was ordered to pay $3,500 within the next 30 days, $500 for every day the salon was open during quarantine. There will be additional $500 fines for every day the salon remains open. She should have no problem paying the fines as a GoFundMe opened by her supporters has already raised $22,000. They have predictably labeled her “an American Hero that has decided to resist tyranny,” because white people keep conflating selfishness with heroism.
As of Wednesday, Texas has 34,422 confirmed coronavirus cases with 4,623 being in Dallas County.