Lebanon, N.H.-based Dartmouth Health has voiced its support for an otolaryngologist who was accused of racism and was the target of threats of violence, saying the physician was misidentified as a man who used a racial slur in a viral TikTok video.
The health system said in a Feb. 24 news release that Andrew Spector, MD, is not the man in the video, calling the accusation a case of "misidentification and rush to judgment."
The video depicts a man in a heated discussion with the woman filming the video, the New Hampshire Union Leader reported Feb. 25. He then calls the woman a racial slur multiple times before driving away, and the video shows the man's car with a Massachusetts license plate. The video ends with the woman asking the public for help identifying the man.
Dartmouth Health said in the release that the person in the video is an individual who may have the same or a similar name. Dr. Spector notified local police of the incident, according to the Union Leader, adding that his family has received threatening messages.
"My initial reaction is, 'This is ridiculous, that’s obviously not me and in a different state than where I live,'" he told the newspaper.
"I am not, and have no relation to, the man in the video circulating online, nor does anyone in my family," Dr. Spector said in the health system release. "My family and I are receiving threatening messages as a result of me being falsely identified as the man in the video. While I can appreciate that people rallied to support the woman who was targeted with vile, deeply hateful words and actions, the repercussions of spreading false accusations have been devastating to deal with, both personally and professionally."
Dr. Spector and the health system said they condemn the language used and conduct depicted in the video.