Santa Clarita Karen forced to apologize as her business implodes after vicious street vendor war

A California business owner dubbed “Santa Clarita Karen” is breaking her silence after a viral confrontation with a street taco vendor sparked furious backlash, but her tearful mea culpa isn’t exactly winning over the internet.Francesca Ortega posted an apology video after footage of her berating a taco vendor exploded online, showing her calling the woman a “stinky old woman” and threatening to call ICE.Ortega now claims the viral clip didn’t tell the whole story.“I’m not who they are portraying on that video.That video was taken out of context,” she said, while acknowledging that her behavior “was not acceptable.”Ortega said she didn’t realize the gravity of invoking Immigration and Customs Enforcement during the heated exchange.“I didn’t know the seriousness that would be taken to mention the word ICE,” she said.

“I now understand the full weight it has and how sensitive people are to that and I am sorry, I’m truly sorry.”The pregnant business owner blamed her outburst on anger and her impulsive personality, saying she “lost” her mind during the confrontation.“I don’t know what happens to me when I’m pregnant,” Ortega said.“I say a lot of stupid sh-t.”She added that she never should have confronted the vendor and insisted she expected the interaction to unfold differently.But Ortega’s apology quickly shifted to the fallout engulfing her family, employees and Santa Clarita cleaning company, which she said she spent a decade building.“My employees have bills to pay, they need to work,” Ortega said.

“They can’t just be losing hours because people are angry at me.”Through tears, she said the controversy was also hurting her children and unborn baby.“I haven’t been able to eat, I haven’t been able to sleep since yesterday,” she said.“This is a complete nightmare.”Social media critics weren’t exactly reaching for the tissues.“How to make an apology video without actually apologizing 101,...