International- A woman went on a racist tirade against a group of Indian-American, according to reports.
- Esmeralda Upton admitted to striking one of the women, who has now filed a civil suit against her.
A Texas woman is being sued after she was arrested for going on a racist rant against a group of Indian-American women who were speaking Bengali.
Bidisha Rudra and three of her friends were saying their goodbyes in a restaurant parking lot in West Plano, Texas on August 24 when Esmeralda Upton began yelling at them.
"I hate you fucking Indians," Upton yelled, per The Dallas Observer. "If things are so great in your country, then stay there."
Rudra and her friends – who are all US citizens – began to record the incident, which made Upton more enraged, and she attacked Rudra and her friends, according to the Observer.
"You turn off that phone or I swear to God I'll fucking shoot your ass," Upton said at the time, per the Observer. She also called the women "curry-ass bitches," according to The Dallas Morning News.
—Johnny Akzam (@JohnnyAkzam) August 25, 2022
Upton would not leave the group alone until police arrived to separate the women, and she was permitted to leave the scene after she refused a breathalyzer test, per the Observer. Plano Police arrested Upton the following day on charges of misdemeanor assault causing bodily injury and terroristic threats, according to a police statement, which noted the department is investigating the incident as a hate crime.
Last week, Rudra filed a civil suit against Upton for compensatory and punitive damages, noting that she has developed high blood pressure, trouble sleeping, and a lack of appetite following the incident, per the Observer. The suit said Rudra has felt humiliation, anxiety, and embarrassment following the assault, as well as symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, the Observer reported.
"Life has not been the same since the incident, to put it lightly," Rudra told the Observer. "There's a lot of trauma, emotional distress, and a feeling of insecurity that keeps haunting me all the time. The assailant's words keep ringing in my ears when I go to sleep."
Rudra told the Observer she now fears for her family's safety and is afraid of Upton and "people who think like her, who are like her."
"Any minority is under some sort of threat in today's world," Rudra told the outlet.
According to an arrest affidavit seen by WFAA-TV, Upton continued her racist remarks to police officers, who described her as "very agitated and uncooperative." She told officers she became agitated when the group of women referred to her as a "white woman," and told officers she is "Mexican-American" and "Native American" and lives in a $1.5 million home. She initially told officers she is a "first generation" American, but later said she is "second generation," per WFAA.
Upton admitted to striking Rudra because the group was "videoing and saying all of this (expletive) that I wasn't doing. And that's what they do. Just like the Black people," Upton told police, per WFAA.
Upton posted a $10,000 bond, according to multiple reports. Court records show that Upton is representing herself as of Saturday. Police said more charges may be forthcoming.
Veronica S. Moyé, a lawyer for Rudra, to the outlet "serious consequences" were needed against Upton — especially considering the alleged physical violence and threats to shoot the women.
"We think there has to be serious, serious consequences for Ms. Upton to send a message that this kind of behavior will be dealt with in the strongest possible way," Moyé said. "An apology would be nice, but certainly would not remedy all of the harm that these women had suffered."
Upton could not be reached for comment on Saturday.