A woman from North Carolina who became known for viral videos of her racist rants against Black Lives Matters protestors and her attack on a Muslim woman has died after being hit by a fire department pickup truck, Citizen-Times reports.
Rachel Dawn Ruit, 41, of Terry’s Gap Road in Henderson County was struck by a fire truck on July 13. She succumbed to her life-threatening injuries on Tuesday, July 14.
Ruit made international news after videos from June 13 and July 1 of her shouting racist remarks and threats at Black Lives Matter protestors in Ashville went viral on June 13 and July 1, The New York Daily News reports. In the videos, Ruit can be heard threatening to sexually assault people.
On July 4, Ruit’s threats became a reality when she attacked a 14-year-old Black girl and a woman named Nahlah Karimah. Karimah described the assault on her Twitter account.
“Less than two hours ago, white supremacist Rachel Ruit ripped my hijab off, bit my face and beat a black teen girl after yelling racial slurs,” Karimah posted July 4 on Twitter.
Less than two hours ago, #WhiteSupremacist #RachelRuit ripped my #hijab off, bit my face and beat a black teen girl after yelling racial slurs. When I tried to pull her off the black child, other racists jumped in. (Thread)
— Nahlah Karimah (@NahlahKarimah) July 4, 2020
When paramedics arrived, a witness named Ernesta Carter who attempted to help Karimah and the 14-year-old girl said that they treated Ruit first, according to the Citizen-Times.
Ruit was arrested at Mission Hospital. By July 9 she was out of jail on a $1,000 bond.
Then, on Monday, July 13 Ruit was struck by a fire department pickup truck at 1:30 p.m. Monday in the 800 block of Patton Ave, according to the New York Daily News.
The Ashville Fire Department officials issued a statement on Wednesday offering condolences to Ruit’s family.
“This is a tragedy for all involved,” City Manager Debra Campbell said in the statement, according to Citizen-Times. “Chief Burnette and I reached out to Ms. Ruit’s family to share our deepest sympathies. We also extend our condolences for all those who knew her.”
AsAmNews has Asian America in its heart. We’re an all-volunteer effort of dedicated staff and interns. Check out our new Instagram account. Go to our Twitter feed and Facebook page for more content. Please consider interning, joining our staff or submitting a story.
