DC Karen banned from Uber after berating black driver in racist outburst

A Washington, D.C., woman has been branded “Karen” after a video surfaced Wednesday morning of her hurling racial slurs at her black Uber driver.

The expletive-laden encounter was recorded by a passerby and has since gone viral — eventually leading to the woman being banned from the ride-sharing app later that day.

Neither the driver nor the rider have been publicly identified. DC police, meanwhile, are investigating the incident, in which the customer repeatedly labeled the driver a “slave” and a “n****r.”

In a statement Wednesday, Uber said they were already “in contact with the driver” and confirmed that “the passenger’s account has been banned from the app.”

A DC-area community news Twitter account reshared the bystander clip on Wednesday, garnering national attention and more than 2 million views in a matter of hours.

“I’m your goddamn boss,” you can hear the woman say at one point in the footage, in which she gives the driver a nudge. “You’re a little piece of shit, n****r.”

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The footage, filmed from a building that overlooked the encounter, begins with an SUV parked in the street below with the rear passenger door open.

Just outside the vehicle, a man and woman can be seen arguing on the sidewalk. The tone of the woman during the argument is strikingly condescending and argumentative.

It’s not immediately clear what sparked the altercation, although barbs between the two would suggest the blast stemmed from a request to use the driver’s phone charger. The clip begins with the white woman complaining after apparently not getting her way.

‘Your phone was not connected!’ the woman yells at first, after the driver apparently declined her request – possibly because he was charging his own phone.

The video then shows the driver backing away from the woman as she walks towards him.

“Get the hell out of my face!” the man shouts, trying to distance himself from the disgruntled customer.

However, the woman continues to push forward, screaming inches from the man’s face.

At this point, the meeting becomes increasingly controversial. ‘I employ you,’ the woman calls defiantly, ‘I’m your boss.’

The man is visibly furious and tries to contain his anger. He remains silent throughout the tirade, but holds his hand out to gesture for the woman to come out of his personal space.

“I’m your fucking boss,” the woman continues, before launching the first of many racial slurs.

“You’re a little piece of shit, n****r,” she yells, repeating the slur several times as she begins to walk away.

The man, apparently fed up with the woman’s behavior, hurls back an insult of his own at this point, calling the customer “ab***h.”

“I’m a bitch?” the woman responds. “You’re still a slave.”

The verbal battle quickly flares up again, with the woman doubling down on her derogatory statements with several significantly worse.

“I asked for a phone charger, you goddamn ignorant bastard,” the woman shouts scornfully the man because her phone battery is low.

The clip ends after the woman continues to complain about her low battery, before hurling another insult at the driver – and even shoving the man, despite his apparent efforts to avoid a physical exchange with the customer.

According to Uber, the employee seen in the footage reported the incident and the driver’s behavior is currently under investigation.

In the meantime, her profile has been removed from the app, the company said.

However, the San Francisco company said the woman’s behavior was “sickening” and said it “has no place on the Uber platform or anywhere in society.”

The Metropolitan Police Department, meanwhile, has said it cannot open its own investigation without an official complaint.

So the power is looking to see if any reports received on Wednesday coincide with the explosive exchange.

It is not yet clear whether the driver has reported the incident to the local police. If he does, the woman could be charged with harassment and possibly even assault for laying her hands on the employee.

In their statement Wednesday, an Uber spokesperson wrote that every customer’s experience should be “safe, respectful and positive.”

The ride-share giant, headquartered in Silicon Valley, responded Wednesday directly below the post that shared the footage, writing, “This kind of behavior is never okay. We have a zero tolerance policy for discrimination.’

The company then asked onlookers — many of whom expressed outrage at the incident — to contact them “if you have any further information about the Uber passenger or driver.”

“Please DM us so we can look into this,” the rep insisted.

Neither the driver nor the rider has been publicly identified. Uber’s internal investigation is currently underway.

However, the Metropolitan Police Department has said it cannot open an official investigation without an official complaint, as expected to see if any reports received on Wednesday coincide with the explosive exchange.

The DCPD did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday evening.