A writer on the hit FX show The Bear has claimed that he was arrested on a train after an “old white lady” complained about how he was sitting.
Alex O’Keefe, also a speechwriter for prominent Democrats, including Senator Elizabeth Warren, has claimed that police were targeting the “one Black” man on board.
According to O’Keefe, he was on a Metropolitan Transportation Authority train bound for Connecticut when the unnamed woman told him to “correct” his sitting position.
O’Keefe says that she reported him to the train’s conductor after he refused. After that, the conductor called the MTA Police Department.
In a video posted to O’Keefe’s Instagram account, the screenwriter can be heard saying that he has not done “anything illegal” as police remove him from his seat.
In his post’s caption, O’Keefe alleged that a friend of the woman told him that he was “not the minority anymore” while they waited for police officers to arrive.
The caption continued: “They pulled me off the train and arrested me without even talking to the Karen who reported the one black person on the train. On the platform, the police detained me and interrogated me.
“Only black folks stayed nearby and recorded the arrest. When I demanded a lawyer and reminded them they didn’t even take a statement from the woman who complained, they eventually released me.
“This country is growing more psycho by the day. What will you do about it?”
The video of the arrest has since gone viral, dividing opinions on social media. One clip posted to TikTok has been reposted over 160,000 times.
One Instagram user commented, “People need to stand up for others. I would have!!”
Another wrote, “Don’t the police QUESTION the lady about her complaint?!?!”
O’Keefe became widely known for contributing to FX’s The Bear series, which has won awards, including an Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series. The show follows a Chicago chef, played by Jeremy Allen White, who returns to his home city to run his late brother’s restaurant.
He is also known for writing speeches for prominent members of the Democratic Party, including Senator Elizabeth Warren and Senator Ed Markey.
Both senators are known for being on the progressive wing of their party, with Senator Markey being the Senate author for the Green New Deal. O’Keefe is also associated with the Green New Deal, having served as its Campaign Director.
Both O’Keefe and the MTA have been approached for comment by The Independent.
