A disturbing scene at Knott’s Berry Farm earlier this month has led to a swift and decisive response from park officials: a 99-year ban for the woman accused of launching into a racist and vulgar tirade during a ride queue.
The incident, originally reported in a Reddit thread that has since gone viral, allegedly took place on July 12 in the Fiesta Village section of the theme park, while guests were boarding the Dragon Swing ride. According to the eyewitness, a woman began shouting at a ride operator and hurling abuse at another family.
“This happened on 7/12. I was with my niece and nephew (both 10) and my wife. We had just boarded the Dragon Swing in Fiesta Village when all of a sudden this lady starts screaming and cussing at the ride operator. She then proceed to throw racial slurs at the family and proceeded to call the mom and the little girl whores and to go back to Mexico. They (parents) screamed back at her that they are not Mexican, they are Puerto Rican and the lady continued by saying she was going to call ICE on them and all of us on the ride including the ride operator. We didn’t get to ride and the mom and dad went after the bigot to confront her about being so bold and calling her daughter a whore (mind you she’s a child around 10 yes old). The magat ran off with her LATINO husband and that’s when security came and took statements from the family, myself and other witnesses. There is no room for hate in this world and I hope that little girl can heal and move on from such a traumatic event.”
The post quickly garnered attention, prompting follow-up inquiries to the park about whether any disciplinary action had been taken.
Soon after, the original poster shared an email update from Michael Bogosian, Director of Safety and Security at Knott’s Berry Farm, confirming the woman had been permanently banned:
“Thank you for contacting us through our Voice of the Customer system. My name is Micheal Bogosian and I am the Director of Security and Safetly at Knott’s Berry Farm.
We are a family friendly theme park and take matters such as this very seriously.
We were made aware of this incident and officers from my department did in fact contact this person. Based on their behaviors they were issued a 99-year ban from all Six Flags properties. If you have any further questions, feel free to contact me at this email,”
It’s worth noting the likely clerical error in Bogosian’s note — Knott’s Berry Farm is part of Cedar Fair, not Six Flags. That said, the action taken by the park has drawn widespread praise online for its seriousness and speed.
In response to the racist lady on 7/12
byu/Xanxth1 inKnottsBerryFarm
Online Reaction: “Take Out the Trash”
Responses to the update were overwhelmingly supportive, with commenters celebrating the no-nonsense action taken by Knott’s:
“I LOVE this! A lot of companies SAY that they have zero tolerance for racism, but Knott’s is out here really showing up!!”
“Yes totally agree, it’s great to finally see companies being more proactive towards their policies”
“Hell yeah! Glad to hear they followed up on this. Gotta take out the trash”
“That’s awesome Knott’s Took care of that! 99 year ban! Haha the best punishment ever just wonder how they can actually enforce that”
While questions remain about how a near-century ban would be enforced logistically, the symbolic weight of the action is clear. Knott’s Berry Farm is making it known that hate speech and harassment of any kind will not be tolerated — even if it comes at the cost of turning away future business.
The event serves as a sobering reminder of how quickly a day of family fun can be disrupted — but also as a hopeful sign that guests and parks alike are no longer willing to stay quiet when it comes to racism.
I believe Cedar Fair and Six Flags merged. There is no longer a Cedar Fair.