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D.C. Police say the incident shared on TikTok is being investigated as a simple assault and they are looking into whether it is a hate crime.
WASHINGTON — A tense interaction caught on video between a food delivery driver and a D.C. business owner is garnering a lot of attention across social media platforms.
In the one-minute video posted Monday on TikTok by delivery driver Gregorio Amudarain, business owner Greg Harris is heard telling him to "Learn English! Learn it! You get money in America. This is-If you get money in America, learn English!"
At one point in the video, Amudarain responds, "No speak English," to which Harris says "I don't give a f---! Learn it! Learn it!"
Amudarain says he showed up to Harris' shop CANNA in D.C.'s Adams Morgan to pick up an order Monday morning. The delivery driver says that after waiting a couple of minutes for the order outside of the shop, he signaled Harris to come toward him because there was in dog inside the business.
"I was scared because of the dog," Amudarain said. He explained the dog had barked at him when he first opened the door.
Once inside the shop, Amudarain says Harris began yelling at him, so he decided to get his phone out and record.
"Learn English! Learn English! Learn English!" Harris is heard saying before proceeding to mimic Spanish.
Amudarain says the business owner toned down his voice once he saw he was recording.
"This ain't your f---in' country. This ain't your f---in' country. Learn English! Learn English," Harris is heard saying.
Amudarain says he has been in the U.S. for two years and it is the first time that he has been met with that type of hostility. He says usually restaurants understand that not all drivers speak English fluently, and "if you don't know English, you show the phone and you get the order."
In the video, Harris forcibly hands over the bag to Amudarain who proceeds to exit the building saying in the video in Spanish, "He's insulting me and I don't understand what he's telling me. That's the store. That's the store."
D.C. Police responded to the scene and on Tuesday said the incident is under active investigation as a simple assault. Investigators are also looking into it being a potential hate-based crime.
"I am saddened. My mom saw the video. My mom cried and told me, 'Son come back to Venezuela because you're being humiliated. Look how you're being treated,'" Amudarain said. The Venezuelan national says he shared the video on his TikTok account because what happened to him is just a glimpse of what delivery drivers in the District have to go through.
On Tuesday, WUSA9 attempted to speak to Harris at the CANNA location, initially without cameras. Outside the shop we explained that we wanted to hear his side of what happened the day prior and what prompted his response.
Harris refused to speak on camera, telling WUSA9 that he would only speak if we sent a Black reporter, or if we paid for the interview. He then proceeded to tell our crew that we should be giving the delivery driver English lessons.
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