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Comments
This guy could've ended it.
But instead we have another "progressive" person who is too proud to admit they did something that is at best ignorant. All he had to do is admit that his schooling failed him and he never bothered to check the origins and that in doing so, remained ignorant of a very important poem and song. It was named song of the century by the library of congress, for crying out loud. This goes beyond simple pop culture or being a "big Billy Holiday fan". It's ok to admit that in a country that is constantly overlooking past achievements by minorities and flat out skips over much of their history in the country, you can remain ignorant of very important works by said minorities. This doesn't mean remaining ignorant is ok, but at least admit you are and that the ignorance can be very easily perceived as willful ignorance or even racism. It's odd that he knows so much about the Smith and her civil rights involvement and not of the song and poem's importance to the same movement years before the book was written. Say you're sorry for being ignorant and that you are now aware and looking to improve or be more aware and leave it at that. Attacking the author or the work itself is just another example the knee-jerk reaction by anyone even remotely accused of being racist has and frankly is not needed. The initial article brought up a point that needed to be discussed, which was how companies like the Friendly Toast need to be more aware of life outside their bubbles and how even seemingly minute things can affect someone deeply.
That being said, the owners definitely threw him under the bus with the comments they made. They knew that those drinks were named after books and should've just said that and taken any responsibility over anything else, including being ignorant of morbid origins. Of course, once again, the knee-jerk reaction is to deflect blame and to hem and haw over how they didn't intend, blah, blah blah. Sadly, you can't claim drink recipes as intellectual property so they're under no legal obligation to ever take the drinks off the menu.
Disappointing all around. At least the original article by Shah is continuing to expose what's wrong with race even in progressive places like Cambridge.
so even though in the article it says:
“I am embarrassed that I did not know the reference to the Billie Holiday song, as I had named the cocktail after the novel. If I had, I certainly would not have named a cocktail after it. I sincerely apologize for that,” Yerxa wrote.
he did INDEED apologize. did you even read this?
If the author
had written a letter to the management or demanded immediately to speak with a manager instead of bringing it up with the server, I'd have more sympathy here but frankly the tone of the piece and her approach has gotten under my skin from the get-go. I've known this song forever but not everyone has (and you realize it was written by a white guy from New York, right? And it's Billie, not Billy?) A 20-something server would have a very small chance of understanding the musical/historical background here and then to somehow be tasked with explaining how the drink got its name and placating an angry customer in the middle of brunch or whenever...oy. Clearly the author is not someone who's ever waited tables. As I've written before here, I can't stand The Friendly Toast for reasons that have nothing to do with their cluelessness about music history but I can't help feeling that they've been steamrollered here by a woman who seems more set on solipsistic drama than on educating or enlightening anyone about anything.
"a very small chance", really?
Just how obscure do you think this is? I'm pretty sure I knew the reference at that age, but maybe that's unusual.
as did I
but I was a young nerd and listened to a lot of old music, especially female jazz vocalists of that era. And I'm almost twenty years past 20-anything--these servers are closer to my kid's age and trust me, it'd be pretty unusual for them to be deeply familiar with that oeuvre, no matter their race.
Not much of a story
A stupid but probably-not-racist bar creates a drink named after banned books without looking up why they were banned or anything else about the name. They show a general lack of historical/cultural knowledge which is particularly stupid when you're basing your menu on the premise of being intellectual.
Customer mentions it's an offensive name. Bar doesn't react quickly -- their 2nd mistake -- but having worked in hospitality you get used to people making claims about your menu which normally are false.
Customer publicly calls out bar. They do a google search and come to their senses and remove the drink.
To me it's a story about a bunch of trendy dopes, not overt racism.
Typical of hipster culture
"A stupid but probably-not-racist bar creates a drink named after banned books without looking up why they were banned or anything else about the name. They show a general lack of historical/cultural knowledge"
This is extremely typical of hipster culture. Hipster culture in some ways can be described as having a nostalgia for something they did not live through in the first place. Yet they don't seem to want to go too far beneath the surface into historical and cultural significance. Like a few years back when people were going around with that image of Che Guevara on T shirts and things as a fashion statement, without having any idea who he really was or the significance of it.
More like...
...simple cultural illiteracy. There's really no need for the pop psychoanalysis.
(and "extremely typical" makes no sense at all)
you could look up why it was banned, too
Particularly if you're going to chastise people for not googling things. It was banned for "lewdness" and "crude language."
Polite racism
its polite racism, which is the type of racism afflicting most of white liberal America. It's just as shitty, if not more so, than overt racism, because at least with overt racists and biggots, you know they're just hateful, but with polite racism, it's frustrating to see people who are otherwise smart and "open-minded" be so defensive when they're called out on something offensive they did. Even if you didn't realize something you did was racist, listen to walk folks tell you, fix the problem, take the blame, apologize, and use it as a learning opportunity to understand more about racism's dirty past and present in America. Don't act so shitty and entitled. Learn how to be a good ally to people of color by understanding and staying away from these shitty types of polite racism.
If you're going to spew right
If you're going to spew right wing talking points, learn how to spell 'bigots' first.
right-wing, really?
what about that comment is right wing? What world do you live in?
Since when have right-wingers been keen on anti-racist work or offered any sort of apology any time anyone has called them out on their racist shit? this is coming from a white liberal who is sick of other white liberals being ignorant of subtle racism and micro-aggressions, thank you very much. (also, sorry that typos exist!)
This just makes no sense.
Not being familiar with the lyrics or import of a particular song does not equal "polite racism." If you happily declare at a party that Chanel No. 5 is your favorite perfume and someone tells you in front of everyone that Coco Chanel was a Nazi collaborator and that wearing the perfume makes you an indirect supporter of the Third Reich, what would your response be? Would you immediately agree and accept the suggestion that you are just a "polite anti-Semite?" If I had ever seen this stupid cocktail on the menu I might well have been inspired to mention it to someone, but not in the middle of service. If you really want a "learning opportunity" there are better ways to do it.
Lack of intention does not erase the hurt
If I step on your foot, should I explain at great length why it's not my fault, because I didn't know your foot was there? That my schooling didn't adequately cover scanning the ground before moving my body? That I can't possibly be expected to know where every person's foot is at all times? That I have great respect for the safety of feet, so I can't possibly have hurt a foot?
No, the correct response is, oh my gosh, I'm so sorry I stepped on your foot, are you OK?
I think I made it quite clear
I think I made it quite clear in my APOLOGY that I WAS NOT aware of the poem or the song... in which case, my schooling DID fail me. However, my school did propose "Strage Fruit" (the novel) to me, which I read and named the cocktail for. This "stepping on your foot" analogy is getting old.