The white woman who became the poster child for white privilege when she called 911 on a black birdwatcher in New York’s Central Park has been charged with filing a false report. But the internet wants more punishment.
Amy Cooper, the former insurance investment manager turned social media scapegoat for systemic racism, has been charged with “falsely reporting an incident in the third degree,” Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance announced in a statement on Monday. Vance also encouraged others who’d been the “target of false reporting” to contact his office.
Cooper, dubbed “Central Park Karen” on social media, lost her job and (briefly) her dog after video of her calling 911 on black birder Christian Cooper (no relation) and claiming he was threatening her life went viral in May. No threats were apparent in the video, and the male Cooper claimed he’d merely told her to put her dog on a leash as mandated by law in that area of Central Park and deployed treats he carried to lure dogs away from noncompliant owners.
The white woman’s misfortunes might have ended there, jobless and reviled by the internet as the embodiment of the dreaded “Karen” archetype. However, the video went viral the same day white police officer Derek Chauvin was filmed kneeling on the neck of black security guard George Floyd for eight minutes in Minneapolis, kicking off months of protests and riots that have forced race into the center of the national discussion. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo capitalized on the Central Park incident, adding a measure criminalizing “false, race-based 911 reports” to a package of tepid police reforms he signed into law last month – all but guaranteeing Cooper would face legal repercussions for her itchy dialing fingers.
Lawyer Robert Barnes announced he would be representing Cooper, promising she would be found not guilty and excoriating “cancerous #CancelCulture.”
I get this question a lot for many of my clients, as they cross the ideological & economic spectrum, and almost always are the underdog in their case. I represent #AmyCooper b/c I am deeply concerned about the direction & legal system weaponization of cancerous #CancelCulturehttps://t.co/4tQ0NCe7Bh
However, most wanted to see more charges brought against Cooper – especially animal cruelty, since she appeared to be choking her dog in the viral video. Several called for more charges for false reporting, or even a “Karen” registry.
She should also have been charged for animal abuse. While being filmed she was half strangling her dog!
YES!! Now give us a Racial Offenders Registry!!!!!
— Emmanuel 𓂀 🏊🏽🍕 𓅓🇬🇭🇺🇸🇬🇧🦄 (@thepizzaknight_) July 6, 2020
But a few came to Cooper’s defense, whether because they thought she didn’t deserve to be scapegoated for all American racism or because they thought the District Attorney was wasting resources on the case.
#amycooper is facing charges for a dramatic phone call after a man said “you won’t like what I do.” This is making an example out of someone due to mob rule. This is a travesty of justice.
They came for her job, her dog, now imprisonment. Next they will want her dead.
Vanishingly few bothered to square their “abolish the police and prisons” rhetoric with their desire to see Central Park Karen behind bars, however.
Charging her is the easy solution. It’s the easy way out. And it reinforces the idea that justice can only be found in the disastrous carceral system we’ve created.
I have no sympathy for Amy Cooper, but I do want us to wrestle with what it means for us to continue to seek justice through courts, police, and prisons. As an abolitionist, it’s a real struggle for me.
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