"Nothing is more certainly written in the book of fate than that these people [blacks are to be free. Nor is it less certain that the two races, equally free, cannot live in the same government. Nature, habit, opinion has drawn indelible lines of distinction between them."
–Thomas Jefferson: Autobiography, 1821. ME 1:72
Just after gunning down a number of his fellow employees at Hartford Distributors in Connecticut, Omar Thornton called authorities and said “I took it into my hands,” claiming he worked at a “racist place.” He added, “I wish I could have got more of the people,” but noted “I’m not going to kill anybody else.”
According to CNN, the 8 a.m. 911 call lasted about four minutes. Two emergency services dispatchers worked to find out where Thornton, 34, was and attempted to get him to surrender. He refused to comply, but stated, “When they find me everything is going to be over.
Near the end of the call, Thornton said “Tell my people that I love them and I’ve got to go now.”
Although Thornton’s girlfriend, Kristi Hannah, told CNN that he told her he was being racially harassed and that his supervisors and union ignored his grievances, the company claims he never filed a complaint with the company or his labor union.
Joanne Hannah, Kristi’s mother, said her daughter saw cell phone photos taken by Thornton of bathroom stalls at the company, which depicted a drawing with a stick figure with a noose around its neck, while another was a cartoon with Thornton’s name written on it.
In addition, Thornton allegedly told Kristi that he overheard coworkers say they wanted to get “that n****r out of there.”
Thornton reportedly opened fire at his workplace after signing resignation papers. The company allegedly had video of him stealing from the workplace and had given him the option to resign or be fired.
Overall, Thornton killed 8 of his fellow workers before turning the gun on himself.