Today is 19-5-2021. I'm one day late to enter a stack of monopoly tickets a cashier at Vons Lacrescenta graciously handed me despite only spending $13. Once a favorite pass time of mine and my clients, I have completely abandoned the game after a scary encounter at Vons Tujunga store #2124. I am a home health care provider. Part of my job description is cooking and preparing meals for my clients. Going grocery shopping for my clients has become extremely difficult. I live in Tujunga California and once frequented my neighborhood Vons market located at 7789 Foothill blvd Tujunga Ca 91042. I would do so much shopping there that the grocery rewards program would reward me with redeemable cash. Being rewarded for something you’d do anyway became fun. That all changed after a frightening encounter with the store’s supervisor Maria. The check stand told me the fruits I was purchasing were the incorrect weight and Maria who was tending the self checkout registers let me have it. She rolled her eyes, she sighed, she even snapped at me. Maria is younger than I am, and several times larger than me. Having never been in a physical confrontation I certainly wasn’t going to start with her. She would crush me easily just as she’s crushed my spirit. I was helpless and trembling. I tried to use my phone to record her, but shaken and confused the best I could do was snap a picture. It shows her looking down upon me menacingly.

     I did an online review about my experience and quickly learned that I am not alone. There’s multiple complaints dating back to 2015. “Maria is rude, manipulative, vindictive”. “The heavy set Hispanic woman is always in a bad mood.” That’s just a sample. As time goes on and I am forced to avoid my neighborhood market I become depressed. I’ve reached out to corporate via the USPS, and also via the internet. After being cautioned by a yellper that Maria may seek revenge I was forced to delete my personal information from Vons club, and remove the pictures of my children from my social profiles. As store manager I feared Maria had access to my home address, and other private information I willingly handed over signing up for Vons just 4 u. Normally this time of year my disabled client and I would play the Vons/Albertsons Monopoly game together. He even enjoyed the tedious board game portion of the game. It kept his hands moving and his mind working. This year we haven’t even played. I have been shopping at Ralphs. No more $10 cash rewards, no more free bagels. Maria has taken all this from me. She’s even tried to silence me. Blogging about my experience on Twitter brought out a peculiar follower. A woman with the handle NancyS31836190 joined the app to call me a liar. To call me poor. To tell me just get over it. Told me to move out of Tujunga. She tweeted me “I’m sure you deserved it”. I’ve been called profanities that no woman should endure. She’s called me everything but fat and ugly. I’m assuming she knows she’d be contradicting her own appearance. It’s threatening and scary, but it won’t stop me. Blocking her on Twitter was easy, but it’s no so simple off line. I imagine it would be even worse on Instagram. Because she’s acquainted with Mariah Carey she actually has nearly a thousand followers. I learned this from a disgruntled coworker. Maria/Mar1ah has fans. It’s possible Nancy isn’t her, but a super fan.

     I am not a Karen. This isn’t about entitlement. Maria scares me. I’ve decided to not be bullied any more. If she does anything to me or my family I have public evidence like this petition. Today I’d like to petition Albertsons CEO Vivek Sankaran to investigate the allegations of bullying and abuse at store number 2124. I migrated to this country for a better life. Cowering in fear in my own neighborhood was not part of my expectations, but it happened all last year. Tujunga became a cesspool of White supremacy in 2020. Weekly there were marches held that started off as pro Trump gatherings, but quickly turned to Nazi salutes, gun waving, brawls, riot police, and media coverage. My quaint, quiet neighborhood no longer seemed like home. My home no longer seems like home after becoming a gun owning family. I objected initially, but my husband was right. We have to be able to protect our home. This is our new normal and I hate it. I hate not being able to walk to the market to get milk, or napkins, or some silly item I’d forgotten. That’s no longer an option. It’s so unfair. I am asking that Vivek Sankaran get to the bottom of what is happening and why it is allowed to happen at Vons Tujunga. I am an American citizen, I am an essential employee, I help people for a living, and I certainly don’t deserve what Maria did to me. I don’t think any of us who have complained to corporate do. Please help #SurvivngStore2124