A nurse in Oklahoma was fired for a “disparaging” Native American joke that she cracked to acquaintances on Snapchat over the weekend.
Jill White, employed by the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, drew outrage after she sent a photo of herself preparing to work at the Choctaw Nation’s Labor Day Festival over the weekend, along with a comment perceived to be offensive to Native Americans, News 6 reported.
“My fake smile,” she captioned the photo. “Excited to go make sure a bunch of fat natives don't stroke out playing softball. With no shoes or shirts on.”
The Snapchat was meant to be an inside joke about a name that White’s friend, Josh Muncy, wanted to give his softball team, KFOR reported.
Muncy explained in an email to the chief of Choctaw Nation that he and White joked about the softball team, who were overweight and Native American, and how the nurse would have to administer CPR if he and his teammates passed out.
He said White’s remark was not aimed at the Choctaw people, but it still drew widespread criticism after the photo and caption were posted online.
The original Snapchat has since been deleted but not before being shared across social media.
“She should absolutely be fired because what Choctaw is going to trust her to care for our family members? This is an (sic) professional ethics breach,” said one Twitter user under the handle Chahta Summer, who identified herself as Native American on her profile.
“Jill White deserves to be fired,” another Twitter user stated.
A friend of White’s told News 9 that the nurse was fired first thing on Tuesday morning.
Choctaw Nation confirmed this in a Facebook post.
“Choctaw leadership was alerted to the incident and the employee is no longer employed with the Choctaw Nation. Disparaging words, even when joking, are never acceptable,” the post read.