A video that went viral mid-December captured a disturbing display of performative outrage inside a Target in Northern California, after a shopper confronted an older employee for wearing a red “Freedom” shirt bearing the name Charlie Kirk. The clip, recorded and posted to social media, shows the confrontation unfolding in a way that should trouble any American who believes in personal liberty and common decency.
In the footage the woman behind the camera peppers the employee with insults and profanity, repeatedly demanding to know why she would wear the shirt and accusing her of supporting a racist. The Target worker remained calm and professional throughout, refusing to be baited into an argument as the confrontation escalated on video.
Social media users quickly identified the confrontational TikToker as Michelea Ponce and traced her employment to Enloe Health in Chico, prompting the health system to acknowledge the incident and say it was deeply concerned about the tenor of the post. Americans can disagree about politics, but weaponizing your employer and your phone to shame an elderly retail worker is not activism, it is bullying, and employers should make that crystal clear.
Local authorities reviewed the viral clip and ultimately concluded the episode did not rise to the level of criminal conduct, a reminder that lawful expression and poor manners are not the same thing. Law enforcement handled the matter appropriately, which makes the online pile on that followed even more regrettable.
Meanwhile a grassroots crowdfunding effort for the Target employee — identified by supporters as Jeanie Beeman — swelled as everyday Americans sent donations to thank her for holding herself with grace. Reports of six figure totals reflect a public instinct to protect decency and reward those who do the right thing, not to weaponize job loss or ruin someone’s life for a moment of outrage.
This episode is yet another example of the thinly veiled intolerance in the name of tolerance that so many conservatives have warned about for years. There is nothing noble about filming and shaming a customer service worker for private political expression; the bully mentality of the outrage industry should be rejected by every freedom-loving American. No one should be treated like a public property for wearing a political slogan, and we must defend the right of peaceful expression for all citizens.
The fallout has also shown how mobs can inadvertently harm ordinary people and institutions: Enloe Health reported that its phone lines were overwhelmed with calls after the video spread, disrupting patient services and prompting leadership to plead for restraint. If conservatives want to win the culture war, we do it by standing up for decency, calling out hypocrisy, and refusing to let a vocal, intolerant minority bully hardworking Americans into silence.
