Taco Truck Tammy

Overview

Taco Truck Tammy is a nickname given to a Dallas, Texas woman after she threatened to call United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (I.C.E.) on the employees of a taco truck parked near her house. After a video of the incident circulated online, the woman was mocked and criticized for her comments, specifically for the racist assumption that the proprietors of a taco truck are not U.S. citizens. The situation drew comparisons to other White Cop-Caller Nicknames, such as BBQ Becky, in which white people have threatened to call authorities on persons of color for existing in public spaces.

Background

On April 4th, 2019, YouTuber Claudia Lopez posted a video entitled "racist woman talking about shes gonna call ICE ON US FOR SELLING FOOD IN DALLAS WHEN WE HAVE PERMIT." The video depicts an altercation between a homeowner confronting the employees of a taco track, who were serving workers at a nearby construction site, telling them to leave the area or she will call immigration authorities. The post received more than 100,000 views in one week (shown below).

Development

Online Reaction

On April 5th, Twitter @ALT_uscis tweeted the video with the caption "hold up, we have a new "Phone Becky"Member: It is Food Truck Becky. Wanting to call ICE on a taco truck. Stay classy Texas." The post received more than 1,200 retweets, 2,500 likes and 7 million views in six days (shown below).

hold up, we have a new "Phone Becky"Member:It is Food Truck Becky. Wanting to call ICE on a taco truck.Stay classy Texas #estaloca pic.twitter.com/xw0pPsTvWW

— ALT-immigration 🛂 “immigration deepness” (@ALT_uscis) April 5, 2019

That day, Twitter user @Dany_xoo tweeted, "A racist white woman in Dallas threatened to call ICE on a taco truck with permit. Twitter, you know what to do." The tweet received more than 33,000 retweets, 66,000 likes and 7 million views in six days (shown below). @Dany_xoo held a poll for the nickname of the woman. The name "Taco Truck Tammy" won the poll securing more than 76% of the near 10,000 votes.^[1]

A racist white woman in Dallas threatened to call ICE on a taco truck with permit. Twitter, you know what to dopic.twitter.com/zoKI0pqQcN

— Daniella ☆･ﾟ☆･ﾟ✧ (@Dany_xoo) April 5, 2019

Media Coverage

Several media outlets covered the controversy, including Yahoo, ^[3] The Daily Dot, ^[4] NBC.^[5] Vice ^[6] and more.

Interview with WFAA

On April 9th, WFAA, a Dallas ABC affiliate said,^[2] "There’s all the honking going on with the taco truck. There’s the hammering, and the beeping, and the sawing, and everything else. I just walked out and I said, 'You guys can’t be here. This is a residential area, you guys need to move.' It was probably that curt."

She continued: "You know what, it was unfortunate," she said. "It’s taught me to watch my words, maybe a little more carefully" (video below).

Search Interest

External References