An Ohio florist has come under fire after launching into a racist and misogynistic tirade against a female Uber driver, following a misunderstanding over a return. The incident, which occurred at a flower shop in Columbus, involved store owner Raymond Valentine, who was recorded directing offensive insults at the woman inside his shop.
The confrontation escalated to a point where Valentine used derogatory terms, including racial and gender-based slurs, against the driver. The offensive behavior was captured on video, which quickly spread online, attracting widespread criticism and leading to a barrage of negative reviews for his business, Valentine Florals.
Apologizing in the wake of the backlash, Valentine acknowledged the impact of his actions after the footage, initially shared on TikTok, drew significant attention. The video was posted by Antonio Moss, who revealed that his mother, Kimberly, was the Uber driver involved in the incident.
The recording shows Valentine in a state of anger, repeatedly shouting at Kimberly Moss to leave his store, further fueling outrage among viewers who condemned his behavior.
Shocking video of his outburst was posted to TikTok on Tuesday by Antonio Moss, whose mother Kimberly was trying to complete the exchange.
The clip showed an irate Valentine repeatedly screaming at Moss to ‘get out’ of his store.
As she tried to reason with him, Valentine’s retorts turned toward racial slurs.
‘You’re a f***ing disgrace. You can kiss my white a**. Get the f*** out!’ Valentine yells.
Ohio florist Raymond Valentine was caught on camera hurling vile racist and sexist insults at a female Uber driver
The driver’s son Antonio Moss expressed fury over the incident. He shared footage of the exchange to TikTok where it went viral
When Moss asked why she would do that, he responded: ‘B****, I’m telling you, get the f*** out!’
Moss finally retaliated by saying that Valentine’s ‘mother’s a b****’ before he erupted one more time, the language growing more and more outrageous.
‘Your mother’s a w****! You n***** c***!’
She then told him she was going to get the police before Valentine responded: ‘That’s why you’re delivering for Uber, b****.’
According to Moss, Valentine called the authorities and told them his mother was armed.
‘My mother was returning a floral order (requested by Uber) and this was the reaction she received from the belligerant [sic] store clerk. He then called the police and told them she had a gun,’ the caption of the video read.
The backlash led Valentine’s florist to disconnect their voicemail box, as the store’s rating on Google dropped to 1.3 out of five, according to 614 Now.
A similarly named flower shop in faraway Houston, Texas was forced to take to Facebook to beg users to stop giving them negative reviews after being confused for Valentine’s business, WSYX reported.
Valentine has since apologized, claiming he’s ‘not racist’ but that what happened ‘came across as being racist’
Moss was furious at his mother’s treatment.
‘It’s my mom, you know? My mom’s the sweetest woman I’ve ever met. Like Mother Teresa, I never heard anybody speak to my mother like that, so it was complete anger,’ he said.
Valentine attempted to do damage control in an interview Thursday with ABC6.
‘I have many friends of color. I’m not racist. What happened yesterday came across as being racist. And I deeply apologize. And I wish I could make it up to her. But I probably won’t be able to. And that’s something we’ll have to live with,’ he said.
He promised to undergo anger management classes and customer service training.
Valentine claimed that he has received death threats, in addition to hundreds of negative comments which led to his flower shop being delisted from Google.
Both parties have gone to police and attorneys to try and find a resolution.
Moss said that he understands the threats are wrong but still feels that there should be some consequences for Valentine.
‘That’s unnecessary, bombing his house. I feel like he should just be exposed. Shut his business down. Share it, let the world see how much of a monster he is.’
Valentine owns Valentine Florals in Columbus, Ohio. The business was inundated with negative reviews following the backlash
His mother, Kimberly, on the other hand, wants to move on from this and even wishes Valentine well.
‘I want this person to be successful, I want this person to succeed at what he’s doing and I also want him to be accountable for his behavior,’ she said.
The Daily Mail approached Valentine through his business’ social media account for comment.
