An Ooltewah woman who loudly called customers and staff during a drag show at a restaurant on Chattanooga's Riverfront 'wicked, evil perverts' was escorted from the premises Thursday night.
The person who shot the video, who is the woman's husband, and who knew beforehand what she was about to do, captured it all on his phone and shared the video on the Instagram page of 'mrsbevelynwilliams.' Chattanooga Police later identified the woman as Bevelyn Williams.
Williams' caption for the video says "Gay pride show in Chattanooga, with children participating? NOT ON MY WATCH!"
Watch the confrontational video below:
Chattanooga Police told us Friday morning that while an officer was called to the disorder, no one was arrested.
This happened at Scottie's on the River at 491 Riverfront Parkway shortly before sundown Thursday.
The video begins with the phone pointing at a table. When the unidentified woman begins speaking, the camera moves closer to her. The camera shows 2 performers in drag looking surprised as the woman grabbed the microphone.
The woman said to the crowd, which included children, 'You people are sick, you people are perverted, how dare you bring children to this event."
The video shows staff confronting the woman and trying to escort her out, while she was shouting.
While it's hard to tell in the video how many children are present, you can hear staff members say there are children present when trying to get Willams to calm down.
At several points in the video, she can be heard saying 'don't touch me!'
After a few minutes, staff ultimately escorted her out of the building.
The video continues by showing a conversation the woman and her husband had with a Chattanooga Police officer.
The woman told the officer she had 'a bill to pay,' presumably for her dinner, and said that she addressed the crowd in the name of Jesus.
She told the officer she was speaking 'the truth,' and that she believed children should not be exposed to the drag show.
A blackboard outside Scottie's promoted the event as "Kick Off Pride on the River: Drag, drinks and drums"
The restaurant shared a drag performance on its Instagram page, but Friday morning, the page apparently deleted the post.
A Chattanooga Pride spokesperson released a statement about the incident Friday:
“What occurred yesterday at Scotties’ on the River was unfortunate. Once again, an event that’s just meant to allow people the opportunity to celebrate and have some quality time with their families eating dinner, and having some variety of entertainment, once again, turned in to something like this.”
Chattanooga Police tell us Williams will not be allowed on the property in the future.
We later learned that Rickey and Bevelyn Williams made headlines near Nashville back in July.
The couple was arrested with 8 other anti-abortion activists after court documents say Bevelyn Williams was one of three people who tried to enter an abortion clinic while posing as a patient.
Court documents say Williams said on a livestream video that the trio would “terrorize the whole building” if it wasn’t allowed inside the clinic.
She also said the three were going to “take this whole building down,” according to court records.
A federal judge issued a restraining order for Rickey and Bevelyn Williams, barring them from interfering with patients or staff at the clinic.
Two weeks ago, that judge extended that restraining order.
In August, Williams was referred to as an "anti-abortion extremist" by New York's Attorney General after an incident at a clinic in New York where they reportedly "disrupted services and harassed employees."
The Williamses are members of the Ooltewah-based Kingdom Conservative Party.
Thursday's incident is the latest in a controversial Chattanooga Pride Week. Read our previous coverage:
- Viral Chattanooga Pride video causes concern for some, but mom who took son calls it safe
- Hamilton County Mayor Wamp wades into Chattanooga Pride week controversy
- After Chattanooga pride event video controversy, community members on both sides speak up
- Backlash over viral videos from Chattanooga Pride events leads to calls for investigation
We're working to learn more. Depend on us to bring you updates as we get them.