When you lose your wallet, you might think that there’s no chance you’re getting it back.
However, data indicates that idea probably isn’t true. While about two-thirds of people say they’ve lost a wallet or had it stolen, a 2019 study published by Science found that people tend to return found wallets—especially if they have money in them. The 2019 study notes that, while empty wallets had a global return rate of about 40%, wallets with money in them averaged returns of 51% to 72%.
So, if you lose your wallet, there’s more than a coin-flip chance of you getting it back. However, that doesn’t mean the people who found your wallet are thrilled to return it, as a recent viral video shows.
Why Didn’t These People Want To Return A Wallet?
In a video with over 2.7 million views, TikTok user Carlos Ramos (@ceelosramos) shows himself in his car outside of a Taco Bell.
“We’re outside Taco Bell, and my wife found this freaking wallet in the drive-thru,” Ramos starts. “And, it has a grip of cash in it.”
Ramos then shows the wallet. It is overflowing with cash.
“We’re trying to … see if we can find an address so we can take this freaking wallet back, and me trying to do the freaking right thing makes me wanna do the f—— wrong thing,” Ramos continues.
Why was the TikToker tempted to do the wrong thing? As he shows in the video, an inspection of the wallet found that the owner was carrying a novelty “White Privilege Card.” The card declares that the wallet owner has white privilege and that it “trumps everything.” The number of the card is “0045 0045 0045 0045”—likely a reference to Donald Trump being the 45th president of the United States.
“I’m not gonna say who this belongs to, but d—,“ Ramos shares. “I’m still gonna do the right thing, though.”
What Happened Next?
In a follow-up video, Ramos documented himself returning the wallet with all of its money.
“Regardless of what I found in the wallet, I’m not gonna let someone’s hate change my morals,” Ramos explains. “I knew from the start I was obviously gonna return the wallet, and so I did. Knock on this door, and I see it’s this 19-year-old kid. I gave him back his wallet; I didn’t ask for any money, I didn’t ask for s—. All I asked for was that White Privilege card, and we had a good conversation.”
Ramos adds that his faith played a role in his decision to return the wallet. Furthermore, he says that disagreement about beliefs should not stop something from doing the right thing.
“Just because someone leaves a Ferrari with the keys in a parking lot, and he has a f—— Trump sticker or a Biden sticker or whatever sticker, it doesn’t make it OK to steal the car,” he shares. “It’s still wrong.”
What Is This Card?
This isn’t the first time that this “White Privilege Card” has caused issues—or gone viral.
In November 2021, a high school in Murray, Utah, issued an apology and a condemnation after several of the cards were handed out by students.
A similar controversy occurred in Oklahoma in March 2022, where students were allegedly selling the cards. The cards, which appeared similar to the one shown in Ramos’ video, contained the message “This card grants its bearer happiness because it’s the color of your skin and not the choices that you make that determine your ability to be successful.”
Around that same time, there was also a protest movement to have this and similar cards removed from Amazon.
Commenters Don’t Like It
In the comments section, many users said that Ramos should have kept the money.
“Keep it, that was the world’s way of giving you a gift,” wrote a commenter.
“I say you donate it to a charity that helps undocumented people,” shared another.
“Now you got the privilege of keeping it,” joked a third.
That said, many stated that Ramos did the right thing by returning it.
“God gave you the wallet so that you can do what you’re doing right now,” stated a user.
“Integrity matters. You have to decide who what kind of person *YOU* want to be,” added a second. “Sometimes you have to decide to do the right thing even if it’s for someone who may not do the same.”
www.tiktok.com/@ceelosramos/video/7615642780324351263
BroBible reached out to Ramos via Instagram direct message.