A self-proclaimed “MAGA Dentist” is going through backlash after a video of her joking about turning down pain-relieving fuel for liberal sufferers at her Santa Clarita clinic blew up on-line.
Dr. Harleen Grewal of Skyline Smiles made this quip and different wisecracks about her distaste for left-leaning purchasers throughout a speech on the Republican Liberty Gala in 2021, feedback that not too long ago attracted mass consideration after a video of the speech went viral on TikTok. That video has since been taken down, however recorded variations of it and response movies criticizing Grewal proceed to flow into.
“I’ve a secret hat I exploit typically, it says, ‘Make your smile nice once more,’” she mentioned on the gala. “So I put on that after I work with my sufferers, once they look horrified or complain, I quietly reduce on the laughing fuel.”
Within the deal with, she additionally jokes about lacking the times when “the Dems stayed house throughout COVID with their masks on” in addition to liberals’ response once they see the photograph wall of Republican leaders within the workplace: “You’d suppose their butt was on fireplace. They bounce up and take off as if Trump was coming within the room.”
The feedback have been met with laughter throughout the context of the Republican gala however have been met with outrage on the web in addition to calls to report Grewal to the California Dental Board.
“Dental care by a dentist who acknowledges that she doesn’t management your ache primarily based in your political social gathering? How does she have a license to observe?” wrote one particular person in a Yelp submit.
Greater than 100 one-star evaluations have been left on her enterprise’ Yelp web page this week, with reviewers lambasting her remarks on the gala. Yelp has since quickly disabled the overview operate for Skyline Smiles, stating that because of elevated consideration within the information persons are more likely to be writing about their private views versus a firsthand client expertise.
Grewal didn’t reply to a request for remark and has not issued a latest public assertion on the viral video. On Thursday morning, nonetheless, she posted a video on the MAGA Dentist and Skyline Smiles Instagram accounts with the caption, “At Skyline Smiles, each affected person is household. We deal with all of our sufferers with the identical degree of care, compassion, and respect as a result of that’s what you deserve!”
By Thursday night, each Instagram accounts have been disabled.
The outrage incited by the movies was so far-reaching {that a} dental workplace in Chicago referred to as Skyline Smiles — which has no affiliation with the Santa Clarita enterprise — has obtained a number of one-star evaluations as folks on-line mistake it for Grewal’s dentistry, mentioned Dr. Deepak Neduvelil, who owns the Chicago clinic.
Grewal has beforehand addressed criticisms about her gala jokes and her melding of enterprise and politics.
In an op-ed titled “You Can’t Cancel Me” printed within the Santa Clarita Valley Sign this month, Grewal mentioned “these assaults have solely made me extra decided to face tall, converse louder and battle more durable.”
Within the article, Grewal mentioned that the California Dental Board had beforehand despatched an investigator to her clinic after somebody accused her of torturing sufferers who didn’t share her political opinions — a grievance Grewal mentioned was primarily based on “a lighthearted joke” she made on the Republican Liberty Gala.
“My phrases have been twisted, and my profession was focused,” she wrote, “however I didn’t again down.”
The California Dental Board mentioned it doesn’t touch upon whether or not complaints are submitted to the board as complaints and investigations are confidential.
Grewal additionally wrote that authorities had investigated her clinic following “utterly false and completely unfounded” allegations that she was operating an unlawful ballot-harvesting operation from her workplace over the last election cycle. In a clip shared on her now-disabled Instagram, Grewal mentioned that she had a poll field in her workplace “not solely gathering Republican ballots, however anyone’s ballots, all people ought to have the ability to vote.”
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Division, which supplies policing companies in Santa Clarita, mentioned deputies would reply to any name for service however didn’t present particulars on whether or not they had responded to calls regarding Grewal’s clinic.
