So, a small group of Karens walked into a bar. No, they came into a restaurant without masks, led by a familiar face, to explain their so-called right to an extraordinarily courteous manager.
At first, viewing the video, one could wonder if the league of Karens understood whether their venture into misinformation was worth the time. The manager stands her ground from the first second, informing them that they either needed to wear a mask while inside or take their order outside.
Led by serial anti-masker Lenka Koloma, the women proceed to push forward in bad faith and pump disinformation about how the American Disabilities Act works. An unseen Karen in the group also claims the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had different guidance. As of at least Aug. 7, which showed the last update, the CDC has recommended masks and social distancing in public spaces.
At the end of the video, a police officer arrived and asked the manager if he can speak with her. He tells her, “I already called for you,” meaning he already had police on the way.
Koloma’s look of defeat is vastly different than the self-righteous smarm she displayed in a previous video.
Who is Lenka Koloma?
In fact, Koloma and another woman in this video were also in another viral moment—pretending to be federal employees of “Freedom to Breathe Agency.” In a TikTok video, Koloma, donning a badge and clipboard, confronts Liz Chavez in Mother’s Market, an organic grocery store in Laguna Woods.
The video got millions of views on TikTok and Twitter; the league of Karens could be seen initially handing Chavez papers with nonsense on them, claiming to be a “We the People” organization.
Koloma tells her, “You are probably paid $15 an hour, or $12 an hour, OK? But you are putting yourself into major legal liability, you personally, OK?”
Koloma, who’s also hawking herself as a guru of some kind, is used to fooling people. She had also been selling cards, saying the bearer is exempt from city ordinances requiring them to wear masks in public spaces.
The Department of Justice had to issue a warning regarding the group and their unlawful cards.
“Do not be fooled by the chicanery and misappropriation of the DOJ eagle,” said Matthew G.T. Martin, the United States attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina to New York Times. “These cards do not carry the force of law. The ‘Freedom to Breathe Agency,’ or ‘FTBA,’ is not a government agency.”