A doctor at the Children's Hospital of Wisconsin is out of a job after she asked a black employee at the hospital if she wanted "to get lynched."
Local news station Fox 6 Now reports that former Children's Hospital doctor Lori Wiork made an offensive remark to 23-year-old housekeeper Siara Robinson during a work seminar for hospital employees earlier this month in which Robinson was asked to raise her hand as part of a team-building exercise.
"Before I could even raise my hand, the doctor said, 'what's the matter with you? Do you wanna get lynched?'" Robinson told Fox 6 Now.
Robinson also told the station that Wiork was only fired from her job after a local activist group, the Original Black Panthers of Milwaukee, started protesting on her behalf.
Wiork sent an apology letter to Robinson in which she insisted that there was no intended racial animus in her words and instead made what she described as an "ignorant mistake."
The Children's Hospital has since released a statement emphasizing that it believes Wiork's conduct was far beyond the bounds of what it could accept from employees.
"We take seriously any allegation that a member of our community has failed to uphold our values and core commitment to an inclusive environment," the hospital said. "As soon as we were made aware of these allegations, we immediately initiated our internal investigation and review process. The individual involved in this situation is no longer employed by Children’s Hospital."
Watch Fox 6 Now's report on the incident below.
