Photo: Getty Images
A viral video showing a group of white men following a Black teen in Sarasota, Florida has sparked outrage among the community and social media users, per the Herald-Tribune.
The teenager's mother, Whitney Portela, shared a one-minute clip on social media of her son being followed down a street in a neighborhood by at least three men. In a Facebook post, Portela said at least one of the men had followed her son in a vehicle for several minutes.
Portela accused the men of racial profiling. Video of the incident has amassed millions of views across social media platforms.
"The morning aftermath of Hurricane Milton, my son wanted to walk the neighborhood to talk to his girlfriend on his phone because we didn't have power so his service was bad in the house. This is what he had to deal with. Even after telling these men he lives here, they were not satisfied with his answer and continued to harass him," Portela wrote on her Facebook.
On Tuesday (October 15), the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office said it had launched an investigation into a complaint filed by the mother.
"The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office is aware of a video circulating on various social media platforms of an incident that occurred in the Skye Ranch neighborhood on Thursday, Oct. 10. Detectives have been assigned and are actively locating and interviewing witnesses in what appears to be an altercation involving neighbors and a male subject who was recording himself as he was walking. The Sheriff’s Office takes these matters seriously and will fully investigate any allegations of criminal activity," the SCSO wrote on Facebook.
Trevor Harvey, the president of the Sarasota Branch of the NAACP, said he assisted Portela in filing her complaint.
"When the video came across my desk it was very disturbing," Harvey said. "It's disturbing that this year we continue to battle these types of issues with young men of color. It's sad that we can't even walk in our neighborhood and not be harassed by someone who doesn't look like us because they think we don't belong to it. It is a clear representation of what's happening in our country. It speaks to the climate we are in. It's disheartening that we are still dealing with these types of issues. I was immediately concerned because it made me think of Ahmahd Aubrery, and we don't want a tragedy like this in our community... these men need to be held accountable."
"We don't know the outcome yet but we are in that and we are in constant contact and walking with the family and meeting with the sheriff's department to make sure the right outcome happens," he added.
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