Racially-charged rant goes viral on social media

A racially-charged rant in Grand Junction is going viral across the nation.

Laura Bennett was filmed outside the Mesa County Department of Human Services yelling at a Latino family and insulting them with racial slurs. The video has now been viewed on Facebook more than 400,000 times.

The video was posted by Wendy Flores who says her mother was being verbally attacked when leaving the Mesa County Department of Human Services.

"My mom got evidence of what Hispanic people go through, so I just wanted to share it with the world," said Wendy Flores.

The woman in the video is Grand Junction resident Laura Bennett. She’s come forward, apologizing for her actions.

"That part of me lost control. It was not right, not appropriate, not acceptable," said Bennett.

Bennett says there’s more to this heated story that the video doesn’t share.

"My behavior is inexcusable, my purpose that led to it, that's not viewed at all, is the animal in question," said Bennett.

Bennett says after leaving an appointment she found the Flores’ family dog Nala locked in a hot car.

"The German shepherd was trying to put his nose towards the crack sniffing or trying to get oxygen and I thought boy that's not right to leave an animal locked in a car," said Bennett.

When confronting the Flores family Bennett says emotions were running high.

"Sometime you have to think about what you say before you say it,” said Flores, “There’s a fine line between staying concerned about the dog and being racists."

Bennett, Latino herself, say the racial remarks came from a dark, and ugly place.

"I don't regret helping the animal. My only regret is the language I used and my approach of how I handled the situation,” said Bennett.

The video, now forever online, has the woman on the receiving end of the rant hoping a lesson can be learned.

"My mom said she could forgive it, but not forget it. I don't think I can because I saw the effect it took on my family, it was just hard," said Flores.

This right here is what's wrong with the world. People acting out of spite and hate towards a different race. Judging someone without knowing them . "You, your kind give the brown people a bad name" first off, my mother is legal in the United States. My father has worked hard in the oil rigs so my mother can raise her children and give us a very privileged life. They always pay their taxes and have had absolutely no government help. They have taught us to help people and to work hard to earn the life we want. My parents have sacrificed so much so much for us and it breaks my heart the way they get treated because of their broken English. I know they can speak english. And I know my mother understood every single word they said. But how can you respond to that when you see your child crying because he doesn't understand why they are saying that. What do you do when your 6 year old grand daughter is so scared she can't stop crying in the car. They say the way you treat people speaks more about your character and who YOU are as a person. These women are a disgrace to humanity over all. America is a diverse country. And that's what makes it such a wonderful place to be a part of. We are all human beings trying to survive. Remember that next time you are trying to bring yourself up by putting someone down.
Posted by Wendy Flores on Monday, August 1, 2016