2 Cielo Vista Walmart workers fired after customer is told ‘You’re in America, learn English’
EL PASO, Texas -- Two employees from El Paso's Cielo Vista Walmart store have been fired after a viral video surfaced showing one of the pair telling a Spanish-speaking customer, "No, you're in America, learn English."
"After reviewing the incident and the circumstances that led to the exchange, we have decided to terminate the employment of both associates involved," Walmart corporate spokesman Lorenzo Lopez told ABC-7 on Wednesday.
The video had circulated online in recent days. It was not clear from the video what led up to the exchange.
"We want to be clear that the behavior shown in the video does not represent our values, and we do not condone the remarks," Lopez said.
He added that there's a "need for our customers and our associates to be compassionate and kind to one another, now as much as ever."
The Cielo Vista Walmart was the scene of the Aug. 3 tragedy that killed 23 people when a gunman opened fire at the store. The man accused in the mass shooting allegedly wrote a manifesto where he talked of the need to prevent an Hispanic invasion of Texas and the nation.
The Walmart location has erected a 30-foot memorial in the store's south-side parking lot paying tribute to the shooting victims that is known as the 'Grand Candella.'
