Franklin Templeton fired an employee after a confrontation she had with an African American man in Central Park that was captured on video.
The video shows a white woman with an unleashed dog in a wooded area of the park calling the police.
“There is an African American man,” she said. “He is recording me and threatening myself and my dog.” The video was posted to Twitter by the man’s sister, who wrote that he is an avid birdwatcher and had asked the woman to put her dog on a leash. The man, Christian Cooper, also posted the video online.
The woman, Amy Cooper, the head of insurance investment at the company, issued an apology on CNN.
Cooper’s behavior drew a backlash on social media. After the video was posted on Monday, the firm placed her on leave. Tuesday afternoon, it announced her termination.
“Following our internal review of the incident in Central Park yesterday, we have made the decision to terminate the employee involved, effective immediately,” a spokeswoman said in a statement. “We do not tolerate racism of any kind at Franklin Templeton.”
The company didn’t name the employee.
“I’m not a racist,” Cooper told CNN. “I did not mean to harm that man in any way. I sincerely and humbly apologize to everyone, especially to that man, his family.”
She added that her “entire life is being destroyed.”
Central Park rules state that dogs must be leashed at all times in the Ramble, the area where the woman was with her dog.
Franklin Resources Inc. is the parent of Franklin Templeton.
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