Wal-Mart fires assistant manager of N.Y. store for criticizing Muslims on Facebook

HAMBURG, N.Y. Wal-Mart has fired an employee of a western New York store after he posted derogatory comments about Muslim customers on Facebook.

The firing follows a request by the New York chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations for Wal-Mart to discipline the assistant manager of the store in Hamburg, a suburb of Buffalo.

Along with a picture of Muslim women in traditional dress, the manager's expletive-filled posting read: "Halloween came early this year. ... Do they really have to ... dress like that."

A spokeswoman for Bentonville, Ark.-based Wal-Mart Stores Inc. says company officials looked into the posting immediately upon learning about it and fired the employee.

CAIR identified him as Terry Earsing. He apologized when reached by The Buffalo News Wednesday.

"I'm truly, honestly sorry about the whole thing. I just apologize. I don't know what else I can say," Earsing told the newspaper.