The actor told People that she and her friends stopped there to “recreate Cersei’s steps from Game of Thrones.” At first, everything was going well, but things soon took a turn for the worst when they stopped at what they thought was a gay bar to get some drinks.
Union quickly realized that they were surrounded by Jim Crow memorabilia and "Neo-Nazi" patrons who immediately began intimidating them, and things got so bad that they were followed down the street when they left.
"I've never experienced that level of hatred and the threat of physical violence," she recalled. "It was such a jolt. And the fear and adrenaline of what happened left us all numb."
"To go through every instance is to take you through every day of my life," she said. "There are microaggressions and there are all out assaults. That's what it is to be a person of color in this country."
“I don't think people understand the violence that comes with racism, whether it's if you're being chased or you're having to watch someone wear blackface to collect a paycheck. It's violent.”
Union spoke more about the “heartbreaking” experience in her book You Got Anything Stronger? Her memoir hit shelves today, and it already looks like it’ll be an excellent read.
