A Black Mississippi man is outraged that a Jackson police officer stopped him from entering a restaurant because he had a hand gun on him in the open-carry state over the weekend.
Ryan Phillips recorded and shared his confrontation with a Black Jackson Police Department officer he accuses of racial profiling.
According to a news report by Jackson’s WAPT 16 News, Phillips wanted to pick up food from Sam’s Southern Eatery restaurant.
In the shared Facebook video, Phillips and the Black officer are going back and forth about respect. Phillips feels that the officer disrespected him when he instructed the gun owner to not enter the eatery with his hand gun. In the post, viewers can hear the man say, “You wouldn’t do a white boy like that.”
In an interview with WAPT 16 News, the man tells reporters that he does not feel safe in Jackson and will carry his .40-caliber Smith & Wesson. He says he had no issues until this incident.
“When I’m in Pearl, I don’t need my firearm, but when I’m in Jackson and I’m going get something to eat with my fiancee, I’m going to have my weapon. If I can’t have it, you won’t get my money.”
The restaurant owner states that customers are not allowed to come in with guns. However, Phillips told the reporter from WAPT he did not see any signs informing him of this.
“Some people are saying I egged him on and I should’ve let it go. Other are saying kudos for standing up for your rights,” he said.
Now, the gun owner is filling a formal complaint in wake of the Facebook posting because he says officers have harassed him online.
