Wife of Pennsylvania’s Lieutenant Governor Is Target of Racial Slur
Ms. Fetterman said in an interview that the Pennsylvania State Police had identified the woman in the video and were investigating.
A native of Brazil, Ms. Fetterman, 38, is a former undocumented immigrant who came with her mother and brother to New York City before she turned 8. She said she received her green card in 2004 and became a citizen in 2009.
She and Mr. Fetterman married in 2008 and have three children. They live in Braddock, a borough east of Pittsburgh in western Pennsylvania where Mr. Fetterman was formerly the mayor.
Mr. Fetterman, who was once dubbed “the coolest mayor in America” and “the mayor of Hell,” has developed a cult following over the years. The shaven-headed 6-foot-8 politician has his town’s 15104 ZIP code tattooed on the inside of one arm. The other arm features the dates when people in the town died from “senseless violence” while he was mayor.
Early on in the coronavirus pandemic, Mr. Fetterman wore a homemade mask to urge residents to don masks.
Ms. Fetterman said the grocery store is about a two-minute drive from her home.
She said that she had been the target of hateful comments online and in emails, but that Sunday’s encounter was the first time she had been attacked to her face.
“I have had a good amount of hate toward me,” she said. “I have learned to get used to them and the right thing to say. It’s become normal for me. It’s never been to my face in public. No one is immune to that.”
