A wannabe pop star is receiving backlash online after she labeled a Target employee as a “racist” for calling the police on her “flash mob” that showed up uninvited to a store and began filming a dance video.
Baby Storme, an internet personality who released a song titled “This City Is A Graveyard,” posted videos on YouTube and X titled “Racist Target Employee Calls The Police On Us For Dancing.”
In the video, Baby Storme, who lists Los Angeles as her hometown on social media, and about a dozen other people dressed in goth-inspired costumes begin a slow dance as they walk through an aisle at a Target, whose exact location could not be determined.
As the large group of mostly women dance to the song, a store employee is seen blocking the camera’s view in an apparent attempt to stop the spectacle.
“We’re gonna have to call the cops on you guys,” the employee is heard saying.
The video then cuts to a store employee telling the group that they were posing a “safety hazard” — prompting cries of protest from the dancers.
“Hey, if we all just start and multiple people record, they can’t block everyone,” one of the dancers commented.
The participants then resume their song and dance through the aisle while a security agent in a yellow jacket follows along with his back turned toward the camera.
At one point, they form a large circle and hold hands while Baby Storme struts through the middle.
Towards the end of the clip, the large group is seen leaving the store.
“I was so excited for us to film a quick flash mob at Target,” Baby Storme wrote in the description of the YouTube video of the incident that she posted on Sunday.
“But before we even walked through the door, this employee called the police on us for being on the property.”
“At first he said we couldn’t film,” she wrote.
“But when we stopped filming, he still continued to kick us out, saying that we were a ‘safety violation,’ and that the police were on their way.”
“So, we made the most of what we could.”
Baby Storme added: “I couldn’t even remember the dance I came up with.”
“This moment for me was one that I really can not describe,” she wrote.
“I tried to keep it together, but all I could focus on was all the beautiful brown faces I was able to bring together.”
“That were able to stand in solidarity today. This is everything I stand for,” she wrote.
But reaction on social media was scathing.
“Girl I like your music but as someone who also works in retail: if you’re showing up during the final minutes of closing time, we have to quickly get people out the store so we can get everything in order within those final minutes,” wrote a commenter on YouTube.
“Also, idk (I don’t know) much about flash mobs but I did take a minor course in audio&film and you do need permission forms to be able to film because you’re on their property,” the commenter added.
“I wouldn’t call this racist because they’re only trying to do their jobs.”
Another commenter wrote: “It’s not racist to call the police on you for getting in people’s way in a damn store. So obvious you want publicity from this.”
“It’s not cool to invade workplaces and make employees lives harder than they need to be,” another commenter added.
The Post has sought comment from Baby Storme and Target.
This story originally appeared on NYPost
