A video clip spread like wildfire across X on Monday, purportedly showing the manager of a Baltimore-area Jersey Mike’s location engaged in a verbal altercation with a woman apparently demanding a free meal for her birthday.
Contrary to the “customer-is-always-right” mentality of the past, a slew of social media users praised the man identified as David for standing up against what has become a troubling trend across the United States in recent years:
I adore this young man. He doesn't budge when she threatens him for not giving her free food.@jerseymikes should promote him to a store manager because they definitely need more people willing to tell bad actors to get the fuck out.
Kudos and huzzah for this guy! https://t.co/m0QQhEwHnw
— The🐰FOO (@PolitiBunny) July 13, 2026
Theft and intimidation has negatively impacted retailers of all sorts, particularly in deep-blue districts where property crime has essentially been decriminalized under a certain threshold.
And a series of so-called “teen takeovers” has put many of the same cities under even more threat this summer, as Fox News recently reported:
The mayor of Raleigh, North Carolina, is weighing whether to impose a curfew for minors following a series of shootings and chaotic events over the Independence Day weekend, in which several fights broke out and nine people were shot amid a series of teen takeovers across the country.
The violence over the holiday weekend prompted Raleigh Mayor Janet Cowell to tell WRAL News she’s considering enacting a curfew for those aged 17 and under.
“As Mayor, I am grateful for the actions of the Raleigh Police officers in response to the situations of juvenile violence across the city on the night of July 4 and the morning of July 5,” Cowell told the news outlet. “Clearly, Raleigh is not exempt from the incidents of youth violence that are occurring across the country. We need to talk with the youth, their parents, schools, and the broader community to understand the root causes and to better coordinate strategies.”
Considering the state of American culture, David’s blunt, albeit discourteous, reaction to an entitled woman shoving a camera in his face has turned him into an unlikely social media hero:
Give this guy a raise 🙋🏼♂️@jerseymikes
sincerely,
your customers
— Mr_Pendulum_ (@Mr_Pendulum_) July 13, 2026
Tell this Jersey employee
That from now on – I’m a fan of Jersey Sandwich Mikes and I’m gonna send him a donation of 600 dollars
He’s a hero person— John Smith (@smithspotif) July 13, 2026
Of course, some commenters suggested there’s likely more to the story:
Post the whole story I was treated poorly over my birthday rewards point blank period!
— Esha (@Sexyliarr3st98) July 13, 2026
None of it takes away from the impact that a wave of disorderly and criminal conduct has negatively impacted the lives of retail employees and customers far and wide.
As the City Journal reported of Chicago a few weeks ago:
Walgreens is pulling out of Chicago’s South Side, home to some of the city’s most crime-ridden areas. The closure of a store in the city’s Chatham neighborhood, set for June 4, marks the seventh Walgreens location to shut down on the South Side in the past year.
Who’s to blame for this departure? Chicago Alderman William Hall, who represents Chatham as part of Ward 6, blames the company. Walgreens, he said, should be charged with “first-degree corporate abandonment” for creating a “medicine drought,” and he even accused it of committing a “pharmaceutical genocide.” (It’s particularly rich that Hall is now castigating Walgreens for closing, given that he hadn’t been happy about Walgreens opening, alleging it “ran out” small, local businesses.)
Later in the same article:
Meantime, Alderman Hall did not even bother to show up for this month’s town hall, according to residents. Amid backlash over the Walgreens closure, Ward 15 Alderman Raymond Lopez asked a common-sense question: “Where was that anger when the stores in our communities were under years and years of assault by criminals allowed to shoplift, vandalize, and destroy neighborhood institutions?”
Lopez has it right. Crime is what’s closing stores in Chicago. It was the main reason that Aldi abruptly closed its Auburn Gresham neighborhood store in 2022, and it’s helped drive the departure from the city of other major businesses like Citadel. Though citywide crime—including robbery—declined last year in line with national trends, there’s still much work to be done, particularly on the South Side.
Instead of condemning a corporation for a tough but logical business decision, Hall should join forces with Lopez in demanding stricter policing and an end to coddling offenders. Only then might Walgreens consider returning.
Here’s the full video that went viral this week:
A Jersey Mike’s employee in Baltimore, David, is receiving mass praise after refusing to take abuse from a black woman demanding free food for her “birthday.”
“I want a free birthday meal.”
“Fck your birthday.” pic.twitter.com/95IPbRKZxe
— Right Angle News Network (@Rightanglenews) July 13, 2026
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