NC Man Questions Black Woman In Pool, Gets Fired: Reports

WINSTON-SALEM, NC — A Winston-Salem man has reportedly been fired from his job at Sonoco after a video surfaced on social media showing him allegedly racially profiling a black woman at a community pool. Jasmine Edwards was at the community pool in the Glenridge neighborhood, WXII-TV reports, when a homeowners association member confronted her.

"Racial profiling at its worst!" Edwards said on her Facebook page, where she shared the video of the incident.

Edwards was at the pool for the Fourth of July holiday when Adam Bloom asked for her address. In the video, she can be heard recounting the confrontation to police and Bloom. "First, he asked me my address, I gave it to him," she says.

Then, Edwards claims, Bloom asked her for an ID to prove it matched the address she gave. When she refused, Bloom called the police, she told the television station.

"Where does it say that I have to show an ID to use the pool?" Edwards asked.

The Winston-Salem Journal reports that Bloom was the pool's chairman in the homeowners association, and that both Bloom and Edwards live in the neighborhood. Bloom has since resigned from the chairman position and from the homeowners association.

Police Verify Edwards' Right To Swim

Winston-Salem Police Chief Catrina Thompson said there was no need for Edwards to show her ID.

"The issue was brought up. The officers asked the questions that needed to be asked to get the issues resolved," Thompson told WXII-TV. "They were able to prove that Jasmine had what she needed to get into the pool. At the end of the day, there was no need to see an ID, at that point, because there was nothing to say that an ID was necessary.

"We will not be used as pawns to further someone's dislike for anyone," said Thompson.

In the video, Edwards says no one else at the pool was asked to show an ID. "I feel this is racial profiling," she says in the video. "I’m the only black person here, with my son in the pool, right? And, he walked only to me to ask for my ID.”

Bloom said in the video that he asks residents for ID "a couple times a week."

The video shows a police officer questioning Edwards about whether she had used a swipe card to enter the pool area.

"Yes ... that's how I got in," Edwards responds.

“If she has a card to get in the pool, I believe that that should be enough,” the officer says.

Bloom asked police to test her gate card. Edwards allowed police to try her card on the entrance, and the door unlocked like normal.

See Jasmine Edwards' Facebook page for the video.

Sonoco Fires Bloom

Sonoco, which employed Bloom, fired him over the racial profiling allegations, the Charlotte Observer reports.

Bloom's activities don't "reflect the core values of our Company, and the employee involved is no longer employed by the Company in any respect," Sonoco said in a statement.

"We do not condone discrimination of any kind ... With more than 20,000 employees across the globe of all races, religions, colors and creeds, we value the diverse experiences and perspectives our teammates bring to our company," Sonoco said.

"We extend our sincerest apologies to all who have been hurt by this incident, especially Ms. Edwards and her family," the statement ends.

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