A white manager of a Kampgrounds of America campground in Mississippi has been fired after video of her brandishing a gun at a black couple was posted to Facebook.
Video posted to Facebook Sunday by Jessica Richardson shows a woman in a yellow KOA shirt holding a gun while the couple tells her they didn't know they needed a reservation to enjoy a picnic by a local lake.
"Today was a beautiful day so my husband (who's a vet), our 2 year old dog, and myself, decided to Google a lake to visit and have a picnic," Jessica Richardson wrote in her post containing the video of the encounter on Facebook. "We found a lake located in Starkville, MS and decided to visit." The couple from Macon, Mississippi, went to a nearby Kampgrounds of America location.
"Not five mins later a truck pulls up and a white lady screams at us, she then jumps out of her truck with a Gun. And proceeded to point it at the 3 of us, simply because we didn't make reservations," Richardson's post says.
In the video posted by Richardson, an unidentified elderly woman wearing a yellow KOA shirt can be seen approaching the couple with her gun drawn after pulling up in her truck.
"This lady just pulled a gun because we out here and don't have reservations," Richardson narrates in the video while recording the woman holding the gun. "The only thing you had to tell us was to leave, we would have left. You didn't have to pull a gun."
"Well, I'm just telling you you need to leave because it's under private ownership," the elderly woman fires back at Richardson. "You can't be out here."
The elderly woman replaces the gun in her pocket as she tries to keep talking to the couple. The couple eventually walks away with their dog.
"After leaving my husband stopped by the office and talked with her husband (they're the property managers)," Richardson's post adds. "The husband tells my husband that reservations aren't needed for the lake. This happened In Starkville, MS."
The unidentified manager has been fired by Kampgrounds of America according to the Associated Press.
KOA released a statement about the incident saying that KOA "does not condone the use of a firearm in any manner."
"KOA Inc. is aware of the situation that occurred Sunday, May 26th at the KOA franchise in Starkville, Mississippi,' they said in a statement. "KOA is currently looking into the matter and reaching out to all of the parties involved. Kampgrounds of America prides itself on providing a welcoming, safe environment for everyone to enjoy the outdoors."