Restaurants in the South.

[Amak8]

I went to South Carolina for the PGA Championship. Every hostess&server was white, and every busboy&cook was black. It was surreal. Is this typical in the South? I don't recall seeing a single black person in a position that interacted with customers.

[snooper2]

1. No that isn't typical..

sorry you lost by the way LOL

[sadbear]

2. In Texas

all the busboys and cooks are Mexican. The waitstaffs tend to be diverse, though.

[SoCalDem]

8. Not in CA where I live at least

with one caveat.. the person on the microphone at drive thrus usually is the one with the least proficiency in English and then of course the speaker on the drive thru only picks up every 4th word

[agent zero]

18. hehehe Barley speak English and they put them on the drive thru.

I don't know what this country is coming too.

[demwing]

31. Wheat a minute...

what do you mean they barley spoke English? Rices that a problem?

[lillypaddle]

81. LOL

[lunasun]

112. Started on Sunday here and still a Zero!!!!

[WilliamPitt]

123. Win.

Series.

[LanternWaste]

80. Next thing you know, people who have poor spelling skills will be typing on the internet....

"Barley (sic) speak English and they put them on the drive thru....


Next thing you know, people who have poor spelling skills will be typing on the internet....

[zzaapp]

113. I don't think there is a grain of truth in this post.

[WilliamPitt]

122. "Barley speak English"

Ow. My brain.

[Aerows]

90. I think that happens everywhere

I swear, when I go through Taco Bell (I'm on the Gulf Coast), I have to repeat my order at least 8 times before they get it. How damn hard is 2 taco supremes and a bean burrito? It's not like I don't order the same thing every time I go through there, but they always have someone who either can't hear or has such a SLOOOW Southern drawl that it takes forever for them to complete a sentence at the window.

Mind you, I have a Southern drawl, but for heaven's sake. 2 taco supremes and a bean burrito is NOT a difficult order.

[ryan_cats]

147. People should remember Joe Peschi in Lethal Weapon.

People should remember Joe Peschi in Lethal Weapon, I forget which one it was. He said, never go thru the drivethru, they f*** you in the drivethru...

[BuckIA]

3. I went on a business trip to SC a few years ago...

I couldn't believe it was the 21st century. I heard more n***er jokes in 2 days than ... well, I just couldn't believe it.

[obamanut2012]

97. uh huh

[Initech]

4. I went to a restaurant in Kentucky last year.

That I didn't notice but the food I did - nearly everything on the menu was deep fried and covered in gravy.

[sadbear]

5. That's called smothered...

and there is some cultural significance to it. When you couldn't afford the good, more expensive cuts, you had to make the cheaper cuts taste as good as possible. This is very common is southern cooking. (I assume Kentucky is considered the South, right?)

[SoCalDem]

7. and gravy is a great "extender"

Bread was a feature of every meal, and sopping up the gravy with it fills you up if you run out of meat

[trof]

16. We are (still?) children of Reconstruction.

Times were really bad in the defeated south.
We were broke and starving.

One of the reasons fried chicken became a staple was that chickens were relatively easy to raise and quick to become mature enough to eat.
Much faster and cheaper to turn into protein than hogs and cattle.
And of course crops (if you had land) took a long time to raise.

Frying was the fastest way to cook them, not using as much fuel (wood fired stoves for the more 'affluent', open cook fires for the less fortunate) as baking or boiling.

Thus, out of deprivation a delicacy.

[gkhouston]

22. Now, now, that's not the *real* reason....

As one elderly lady once told me, "Honey, if you can't fry it, it ain't fit to eat!"

[GoneOffShore]

91. And that is why so many people in the south die of "Biscuit Poisoning".

[Lint Head]

29. Also cornbread in milk. I still eat it.

[southernyankeebelle]

33. Am not crazy for southern corn bread. I like the sweat cornbread like from PA. Hmmmm good.

[X_Digger]

39. Blasphemer! Sugar is not an ingredient in corn bread!

1 cup of flour
1 cup of corn meal
8 oz buttermilk
1/2 tsp baking soda
pinch of salt
2 eggs

Take a cast iron skillet, pour 1/4" of vegetable oil in it, and throw it into a 350 degree oven.

Mix the dry ingredients together, make a depression in the center of the dry ingredients, and drop in the eggs. start stirring in the buttermilk, picking up more and more of the dry ingredients as you add the buttermilk. Stop adding buttermilk when you get to the consistency of pancake batter with all the dry ingredients incorporated.

Pull the (now hot) skillet out of the oven, and pour the batter in (watch out for the sizzle). Pop it back into the oven and bake until golden brown. The hot oil will keep it from sticking when you flip it over.

[OriginalGeek]

44. I admit I like both

but I think of the sweet as dessert with butter and honey.

My mother in law used to make the best real cornbread...Man I LOVED being over at her house and seeing that cast iron skillet come out.

[X_Digger]

46. Give me a chunk of yellow cornbread and some unsalted real butter..

*heaven*

[AnotherMcIntosh]

152. That's enough for heaven? Roy Orbison liked corn bread with extras:

Send me a pan of corn bread with some turnip greens on the side
And if you really want to mess with my head give me anything Southern fried
...
Send me a woman to love me with a lot of meat on her bones
there's something about a big lady I just can't leave em alone
...
cause I'm a Southern man, a hah ah I'm a Southern man, I'm a Southern
man, Southern man, I'm a Southern man

from I'm a Southern Man

[X_Digger]

154. Add in pinto beans and fried potatoes, then :) n/t

[Ilsa]

65. I like mine with a little more salt,

And I love it cooked in cast iron like that. The edge of the batter fries. Yummy!

[southernyankeebelle]

75. LOL when I make for my husband I use the package all you do is add the water. I have

skillet shaped into corn bread sticks. He is the only one that eats it. Sorry I just don't like it.

[X_Digger]

79. Make that recipe, I bet you'll change your mind..

The buttermilk is the secret. Adds a nice tang that complements the butter nicely.

[southernyankeebelle]

87. My mother-in-law has made it using butter milk. I just can't help it. Honestly I am not

much on cornbread to eat. Once in awhile I'll eat it if its sweat. But I like toast and cheese which I usually eat that for breakfast. I am not even crazy for biscuits. I know am weird. But I can't help it.

[X_Digger]

88. Yeah, cornbread isn't for everyone.

But biscuits? Careful how loud you say that, you'll get deported

[southernyankeebelle]

144. LOL, hahahahahahahahahahaha that is funny. I told you I was weird. The topper is

am a picky eater. I like pumpernickel and rye bread. I loveeeeeeeeeeeeee Italian bread and I like wheat bread.

[Erose999]

84. I second this, but the exception is Jamaican food. The local Jamaican place is so spicy that you

almost need the sweet cornbread as a contrast. And it goes with a lot of the side dishes that have a cinnamon/allspice flavor.

[X_Digger]

86. My great grandmother called cornbread with sugar "johnnycake". She made it with chili.

Add 2 tsp sugar to the above recipe.

She'd make a huge pot of chili, and instead of making the bread in a skillet, she'd take the pot of chili, pour the batter on top of the chili, and slide it into the oven. The bread bakes on top of the chili. When you get a bowl of chili, you get a chunk of johnnycake, too.

[EmeraldCityGrl]

151. OMG that sounds fantastic!

I bet her fried chicken was to die for. Love all those old southern recipes.
Can't find that anywhere in my area.

[X_Digger]

153. I still make her chili and johnnycake.

I stopped bringing it to work, though- I kept having folks asking for a bite then the recipe.

She was an amazing cook. I still can't get her gravy recipe down, though.. always ends up too thick or too thin.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

48. Wait, real southern cornbread has no sugar?

I did not know that! in CA, where I'm from originally, we made ours with jalapenos and cheese. Totally yummy!

Since I've been here (Texas) I've had to adapt to the way of the locals when I cook for them. They insist on sweet cornbread. Which I will not eat.

Too funny! This area was originally settled by folks from up north. They've kept "Yankee" customs.

Thanks for that. I'm telling the in-laws next time they complain.

[rppper]

60. A southern/Yankee food tale....

I had a good friend in the navy from "baaaaaah-stun"...myself being from NE Texas....who wanted to try grits for the 1st time, so he asked me what I put on them to make corn mush edible....I said add some butter, salt and pepper to taste....he thought about it for a second and said "buttah fah shuh, but I'm gonna try it with sugah instead of salt....like cream of wheat..." after a few bites, he hands me the bowl and says "rich ya gotta fuchin' try this..." I'll be damned but it was delicious! I have to admit I felt a Little blasphemous....which my very texan(but a progressive untill she passed) mother confirmed for me when I told her the story, called me a
Damn Yankee too! I still eat it like my Boston friend liked it about 1/4 of the time that I eat grits, but I like to cut up a fried egg or two and mix it with the grits.....I see it like this....I showed a Yankee the food Of the gods, he just used his independent thinking to Flavor them...

Don't take offense to the Yankee thing...it really is a Term of endearment....hey, my fiances from upstate new York!

[trof]

72. Grits + eggs = Loblolly!

That's what we call it.

[southernyankeebelle]

74. LOL, how funny. When I lived in TX my family never ate any cornbread. I grew up on Italian food.

My momma growing up never ate breakfast. They might of had a roll with butter and expresso coffee about 10:00 am. Their main dinner was about 1:00 pm. and about 8:00 pm light dinner with fruit. I guess it's all the way you are raised. My grandmother in PA always made sweat corn bread.

[HiPointDem]

61. what is southern cornbread like?

[southernyankeebelle]

73. To me it isn't sweat. For me it is bland. My husband loves it the southern better.

Sweat corn bread taste more like a cake. Hmmm good. But I do have to say I don't eat alot of any corn bread.

[gkhouston]

93. Sweet/not sweet varies from place to place, but cooked in a hot cast iron

something is very traditional. Used to be the skillet was greased with bacon drippings, but nowadays it's often shortening or oil.

[ceile]

140. My grandaddy always made it with bacon fat.

His was, and still is for the most part, the only corn bread I'd eat. Can't touch the sweet stuff.

[gkhouston]

142. I like it sweetened with sorghum, or a little sugar if I'm out of cane syrup.

My mom used to use drippings. Then again, she used bacon fat in fried apples, too.

Now I'm having a biscuit craving...

[ceile]

145. Right?!

I'm making pork chops w/ hatch chili sauce tonight, may have to make some corn bread too...

[Odin2005]

100. I'm a Minnesota Yank and I love biscuits with sausage gravy.

That shit is like the Olympian Gods' ambrosia!

[MADem]

136. I eat that bad food maybe two or three times a year, when I'm travelling.

And I seek that shit out--I won't lie.

It does taste good. It may not be good FOR you, but hey--everything in moderation.

[lastlib]

12. In a lot of households down there, gravy is a beverage.....

(jus' sayin'............)

[Retrograde]

40. Fat and salt appeal to our taste buds

I was in a small family-run restaurant in West Virginia once where the menu listed broiled chicken. The waitress asked if I wanted the broiled chicken microwaved or deep fried. They did have a good berry cobbler, though.

[Bake]

146. You say that as if it's a BAD thing ....

Mmmmm ... deep fried ... gravy ...

YUM!



Bake

[lpbk2713]

6. Since you ask ...

it's typical for businesses to cater that way to people that follow the PGA Tour.

[gollygee]

9. Maybe they were expecting this guy to show up

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10021124622

But really, maybe it was just coincidence, or maybe there are racist expectations about who gets what job. Though I live in Michigan, so not the south by a long shot, and there seem to generally be more African American busboys and cooks than servers and hostesses as well. Maybe racism but not limited to the south.

[DLine]

10. I wouldn't say its typical...

Just depends I guess. Im white and were I to work in a restaurant I would much rather be a cook than a waiter. I don't think I could take the shit some servers seem to get from customers.

[Major Nikon]

11. When I lived in Georgia I noticed that the entire area is highly segregated

Georgia, in addition to parts of South Carolina, Alabama, and Florida just seemed to be very highly segregated. It was as if there were racial lines everywhere that people rarely crossed. I have never known the rest of the South to be that way to that extent.

[unc70]

13. Golfers are mostly white male Repubs

Last edited Mon Aug 13, 2012, 06:33 PM - Edit history (2)

Disclaimer: I play golf, but I am not a "golfer". I belong to a Country Club, but since this is Chapel Hill, we are quite diverse and relatively liberal.

In the upscale restaurants on Kiawah and in Charleston (and up in MB) that cater to the golf crowd, what you describe is typical. SC in general has more of that kind of racial segmentation than here in NC, enough so that we notice it when we cross the border.

You find that same pattern around Augusta, Ga / Aiken, SC and around Hilton Head. In many ways, golfers from elsewhere are probably at least as racist as the local populations.

[Skip Intro]

53. So you're saying the population of Charleston is racist? BS.

"The golfers are at least as racist as the local population."

And how racist is that?

You don't sound like you know what the hell you're talking about.

I've lived in different parts of the Charleston area for years. No town or city in this nation (or world, for that matter) can say racism doesn't exist there, but I can tell you that it doesn't define the Charleston area. Your characterization of Charleston as such a place is way off.

[unc70]

58. You misread what I said

Racial segmentation in restaurant staffing is a pattern I routinely see in many area, Charleston included.

It says relatively lite about race relations locally now, but says a lot about the past.

The line you took offense to was referring to the golfers more than the locals. There is a subset of golfers who, when together and mixed with alcohol, become some of the crudest, most obnoxious bunch of AHs known to man.

My roots run deep in the Carolinas, including to the Hugeonots in SC.

[cwydro]

62. thanks for your post to the op

newbie making regional slurs already.

Ick

[obamanut2012]

98. +1

[LuvNewcastle]

14. It is rather typical here.

I worked for 25 years in the service industry here in Mississippi, and it's pretty common to see a mostly white waitstaff and a mostly black kitchen staff. You don't see a lot of female cooks in restaurants down here, either. Most managers I've known go out of their way to hire black servers, but not too many black people apply for those jobs. There's some kind of cultural thing there that I've never quite understood. I've heard it said that since a lot of people look at waiters as servants, a lot of black people don't feel comfortable with those jobs. I don't know if there's anything to that, though. After all, a lot of people have cooks as servants too.

[Sgent]

15. That actually makes sense

to me.

I grew up in Mississippi, and worked in a small fern bar chain in the area. The kitchen was very diverse, and although there were some black servers / bartenders / greeters, it wasn't proportional to the population or the kitchen.

That being said, it was one of the most professional management teams I've ever worked with, and I'm sure they had no issues with hiring minorities. They even promoted one of the black servers into the management training program until he went off the deep end (stopped showing up), so this makes as much sense as anything else I've heard.

[HopeHoops]

17. It's been a while since I've been south of MD, but that at least used to be typical. Not sure now.

Even here in PA it is common. I don't even consider this particular area (Harrisburg) to be all that racist compared to others in PA. Still, that's a common trend, especially in places like Perkins, Cracker Barrel, and Waffle House. Curiously, Hooters is one of the most diverse with respect to race, but they do have a rather strict gender restriction on what roles you can have. Face it, though, guys just wouldn't look right in Hooters shorts.

[dsc]

21. Oh I don't know about that

Just saying.

[HopeHoops]

78. If he tried to wait on MY table, I'd head straight to Waffle House.

[Bohunk68]

83. OHHHH MYYYYYYY

I'm with you DSC. He could wait on my table anytime he wants to. I know where I'd put the TIP, too!

[Lex]

20. Welcome to DU. And no, at least in NC that is NOT typical. nt

[WorseBeforeBetter]

52. I'd like to invite our new member to The Pit, Cuban Revolution...

and Mama Dip's, for starters. Raleigh, Durham and Communist Chapel Hill covered!

[obamanut2012]

99. Mama Dip's! And, just for fun

The Ratskeller.

[unc70]

114. The Rat has been closed for several years.

Once it closed, efforts to get it reopened have be thwarted by many problems, including trying to get that basement space structurally sound and renovated to meet current standards. A nightmare on top of some other problems.

We keep hoping it will reopen while enough of the cooks and waits are still around to train the new staff in how it should be. Word is that the guys still want to make it happen. So do the rest of us.

[obamanut2012]

120. No!

Shows how long it's been since I've been to that part of Franklin Street.

The basement is such an old rabbit warren it can probably never bee brought up to code. God, so many fun afternoons and nights spent there!

[unc70]

141. Sutton's Drug is other side of Amber Alley

Last edited Tue Aug 14, 2012, 05:08 PM - Edit history (1)

You have to go to that area for Sutton's Drug for their lunch counter. John runs things much like 40-50 years ago. Great guy, great place, great comfort food.

Hop on the bus downtown for lunch sometimes. (note for outsiders: the entire Chapel Hill bus system is fare free, and we are talking about a lot of buses. Been ten years w/o fares).

[PayAttentionFool]

23. The most striking thing I notice in the south

is that black men will not look a white man in the eye when conversing with them.

I have also been in places where all the wait staff and cooks are black and the only person who can handle the money is white.

I have had both happen in AL,SC, NC, OK, FL,MS, LA, TN and GA

Pretty pathetic for this nonsense to still be happening in America today but when iy is ingrained into the culture it is to be expected.

[ornotna]

24. Are you for real?

"black men will not look a white man in the eye when conversing with them"

You have not been paying attention.

[PayAttentionFool]

63. Yes I am for real

but if you don't want to believe me, don’t.

[ornotna]

95. I don't believe you

I've been living in the south since 1979 and that is just not the case. I can hear that whistle your blowing.

[obamanut2012]

103. I don't, either

I grew up and live in NC, and have NEVER seen this. My God. My boss is an AA man, btw.

You need to quit watching "Call Me Mister Tibbs" and "The Help."

Racism is well and alive here, just like it is in every state, but this is NOT the dynamic here.

[cordelia]

115. I don't believe you either.

Not for a single, solitary moment.

[Lex]

25. Cool story, bro, but that is just not typical.

nt

[PayAttentionFool]

64. OK if you say so

But in my experience it is the norm all over the south.

[Lex]

89. Welcome to DU. It's not that I "say" so; it's that I know so.

Enjoy your stay here.

[obamanut2012]

104. No it isn't

[cordelia]

116. Wrong.

[MADem]

137. You're not very experienced, or you move in a very limited circle. nt

[ceile]

143. Well you obviously have never been to TX.

That shit don't fly here.

[reflection]

77. Lived in the south all my life

and travel extensively. I feel that while there are regional differences in the way we collectively approach our politics, when you get down to the one-on-one interactions between individuals, people are pretty much the same wherever you go.

[Skittles]

28. WTF????

RIDICULOUS

[PayAttentionFool]

68. So you were with me and can provide proof that it did not happen?

[ncgrits]

36. Not the case in NC

I was just in the mom and pop hardware today in my small town. And all the men (black and white) were in there shootin' the shit and slappin' backs and, yes, looking each other in the eye--per usual.

[PayAttentionFool]

66. Well that would be refreshing to see

Got video and audio proof of it happening?

50+ years of experience with a good chunk of it spent in the south tells me it did not happen but I will take your word for it. Everyone’s experiences are different.

[obamanut2012]

105. *yawn*

[ncgrits]

156. nice answer. you weren't there. i'm not a liar. eom

[OriginalGeek]

45. Lol wat?

I've lived in the south all my 48 years - Florida, Georgia, Texas, Maryland, Kentucky and North Carolina and never once noticed this strange phenomenon. I've eaten restaurants owned by blacks, at black friends houses, with black co-workers and had black waiters, bar-tenders, bosses and employees...All have looked me in the eye.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

55. Having lived in Georgia permit me to...

Call bullshit. WTF are you talking about?

I was a waitress there, too. We all handled the money. No one was afraid to look anyone in the eye either. Hell, we all went out after work together.

You've seen too many old movies.

[PayAttentionFool]

67. Sure if you say so

Sad so many live in denial in the south.

[LanternWaste]

127. I find it somewhat ironic...

I find it somewhat ironic that so many people in this thread and with first-hand experience are invalidating your statement, yet you indict *them* for denial.

If nothing else, simple common sense tells us that although we may believe our position to be absolute, if a dozen people inform us it's not, we should, at the very least, re-evaluate our position.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

71. and those old movies

are very likely where this sort of shit comes from...are there pockets of the south where this happens? sure...i would bet money on it. but is it as pervasive as the OP and this person make it seem??? oh, hayel no!

sP

[LanternWaste]

85. Having lived most of my life in TX, I can honestly say that I have *never* seen that.

Having lived most of my life in TX, I can honestly say that I have *never* seen that.

[pecwae]

92. Jeepers!

You and the OP really should stay far away from the South. All the other parts of the country are totally cool; no bigotry, no racism, all equality, peace and love. Everyone can meet each others eyes everywhere except the South, so stay very far away!

[obamanut2012]

101. Give me an effing break

This is absolutely not true.

I have to check if my supervisor, an AA gentleman, looks his white coworkers in the eyes. Oh, just checked. He does.

[WilliamPitt]

119. (facepalm)

[NCTraveler]

139. The people you work with don't trust you...

That's why they won't look you in the eyes.

[ileus]

26. Not typical for Virginia.

[brewens]

27. I was in Salt Lake training for the Red Cross a few years back. It was funny that

hispanics ran the burger joint closest to the blood center and it was all white people at Taco Time down the road. I can't remember if it was a Wendy's or Burger King. One of those though.

[demwing]

150. Taco time, lol - I remember those places

Taco Time food reminded me of what Mexican food would taste like if it were prepared by Mexicans, trying their best to make food that tasted like crappy Americanized versions of Mexican food. Imagine fake Taco Bell, made by Mexicans.

[Lint Head]

30. Something about this post doesn't feel right.

[ncgrits]

37. This! nt

[Lex]

38. Yeah, we forgot to welcome the new poster to DU!

*ahem*

[Lint Head]

43. That's it! Yeah that's right.

[obamanut2012]

106. hahaha

[WinkyDink]

129. ;-)

[cherokeeprogressive]

32. I think the intent of this post is simply to stir shit.

So you went to how many restaurants while you were there? Just how many cooks did you see? What did you do... tour the kitchens?

IMO you're either shit-stirring or have fucking horrible taste in restaurants.

[tammywammy]

34. +1 n/t

[Lint Head]

51. Agree!! +1,000

[nolabear]

35. You're kidding. Or BSing. Or just hung out at the Country Club or something.

Honey, that's so far off the mark that it doesn't even rile.

[X_Digger]

41. *cough* Welcome to DU. *cough* n/t

[MrMickeysMom]

42. You must have visited the restaurants listed on the PGA's list...

As recommended by Judge Smails, eh?

[lynne]

47. What were you doing in the kitchens?

Last I checked, that's where the cooks hang out.

[Skip Intro]

49. I live in the area. In which which restaurant(s) did you see this? nt

[Incitatus]

50. Not in FL

But the more north you go from here, the more south you get.

[pstokely]

54. Was this in local or chain places (or both)?

nt

[spanone]

56. no

[DonCoquixote]

57. I doubt this is typical

It may be a condition of the event, but restaurants in the South are often some of the few areas where White and Blacks do not have much problems fraternizing. I cannot speak for the whole South, but often a famed restaurant was one of the few was a minority could get famous and wealthy down South. Down here, even more exotic cooking tends to attract all types. I remember when I thought Sushi would never make it down here, true enough, the same sort of people that loved spicy seafood pack those joints.

[Rowdyboy]

59. Not really. In Mississippi I see a good mix of races and sexes in all those positions....depends on

the individual restaurant.

[steve2470]

69. this is not typical at all, at least not where I've lived in the south

I've had plenty of black servers and hosts, and seen plenty of white cooks and busboys.

[pecwae]

70. Yes, that's precisely how it is.

POC are absolutely prohibited from any type of interaction with white folks below the Mason-Dixon line. Of course, you know this since you've seen it firsthand and reported it here. If I were you I'd never, ever visit the South again!

[obamanut2012]

108. .....

[AngryAmish]

76. Where did you watch the tournament?

Because of the site Dye put the double loop layout (which makes sense). But it also makes watching darn hard - a fair walk to get out to 4,5 and 13, 14. It looked real crowded around 1 and 18.

I have never been out there. (if I'm going to drop that kind of coin I'm going to Bandon or Dismal. Or play Lawsonia eight times.) Did it look playable when the wind got up - like Friday or Saturday morning?

[Erose999]

82. The back of the house is almost always mostly Latino here in GA.

[DawgHouse]

94. Not typical n/t

[obamanut2012]

96. No, of course it isn't

I just love these South threads so much.

[nolabear]

102. Makes you want to spit nails, doesn't it?

Damn, the South has enough trouble without bullshitartists taking potshots. I note it hasn't been back to defend or discuss. Typical driveby.

[obamanut2012]

109. Exactly

Should I start an OP for us Southern Liberals? Serious questions.

[obamanut2012]

107. Proud Tarheel here representing Southern Liberals

Shout out now, y'all!

[cordelia]

110. I was getting worried!

We haven't had an ignorant South bashing thread in 13 or 14 minutes!

[obamanut2012]

111. +1

[Lex]

117. Low post count Newbies with weird or bigoted stories seem to be cropping up

a LOT lately.

[WilliamPitt]

118. I went to Boston/Providence/New York/a thousand other non-Southern cities...

Every server was white, and every busboy/cook was Hispanic. I don't recall seeing a single Hispanic person in a position that interacted with customers.

[obamanut2012]

121. This should be an OP!

[ieoeja]

124. I wouldn't say "every", but I have certainly seen that trend in northern locales.

What I find truly amazing is that, while this is true in the north, and you probably won't find any northerners denying it, according to all the DU southerners this does not occur in the south. Apparently, minorities in the south are treated far, far better than they are in the north.

That, or a bunch of southerners just don't want to admit that bigotry is still fairly common throughout the United States.

[obamanut2012]

130. Who of us denied bigotry exists in the South?

None of us.

And, I do firmly believe the South is more socially integrated, basing this on several summers I spent in the NE as a teen, as well as some relatives I have who live in NH, and personal experiences I have experienced on business trips (it is always assumed it's okay to be racist in front of you since you are Southern).

[cordelia]

133. + 1

[pecwae]

138. Good lord, you've

read a pantload that's not there!

[Liberal_in_LA]

125. I've seen that same pattern.

[MADem]

128. How did you know the ethnicity of the waitstaff? Hispanics come in all colors of the rainbow.

Hispanic is an ETHNICITY, not a race. They can be white, black, Asian, Native, you-name-it.

For all you know, your servers could have been a Carlos or Carmen.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Hispanic_and_Latino_Americans

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Hispanic_and_Latino_Americans

&feature=related

[obamanut2012]

131. Yup, it is a cultural construct, not a "race"

You can have Asian Hispanics, Black Hispanics, Indian Hispanics, White Hispanics...

[MADem]

135. Up north (and I have had Hispanics wait on me up this way--I have known this because I have known

the young people doing the "waiting" and I know who their momma and daddy are, too) I think the issue is not ethnicity, it is language. If you are a poor English speaker, you just aren't going to be waiting on people, unless you're running the register at a McDonald's, where you only have to learn a very limited amount of banter and the manager is just a "What the fuck is this guy saying" away. Having a waiter who has trouble comprehending the customers is just not good for business.

The lack of language facility isn't an impediment entirely, though--you'll be hired if you're industrious, and you'll get a job where your lack of facility in English isn't an impediment--that's usually in the kitchen, on the clean-up crew, or doing the heavy lifting for the dishwashing team.

If you can "Paahk yo-ah caaaah in Haaahvid Yaaaahd" you can be a Manuel or a Maria and rake in those table serving tips, yee haw. Money for college!

There's just no way to "Find The Hispanic" by looking and there never, ever has been. Not all of 'em look like Juan Valdez.

[WilliamPitt]

134. .

[MADem]

148. Are you suggesting I missed the point? I don't think I did.

I am saying it's very easy to be unintentionally racist.

Not all "Hispanics" look like Cesar Chavez. Or Hugo Chavez.

I live in Massachusetts, and I know plenty of Hispanics who don't "look Hispanic"--whatever that means. I'm related to a few of them, too.

[WilliamPitt]

155. The point, MADem,

Last edited Wed Aug 15, 2012, 09:33 AM - Edit history (1)

was that the OP's assertion is utterly stupid South-bashing, so I wrote exactly the same thing, substituting 'Hispanic' for 'black' to show how stupid it was.

...and got a lecture on race from someone who didn't catch the thrust.

[MADem]

126. I was in a Waffle House in Alabama earlier this year.

My information is purely anecdotal. The cook was a middle-aged white woman, the two servers on duty were black --a teen aged girl and a young woman in her twenties, there was a developmentally disabled white adult male, around forty-ish, I'm guessing, who was doing the sweeping and dishwashing, the food was "heart attack on a plate" but we were hungry and it tasted very good.

The last time I was in South Carolina (maybe two years back) I ate at places where I didn't see any white people, so I guess it just depends where you're having your meal.

Maybe that's just how it rolls at country clubs down south--I don't patronize those!

[obamanut2012]

132. Nor me!

[demwing]

149. Hit up the "Food" court at the Flea Market in FLA

I used my quotes with purpose. There were certainly more fleas in the flea market than food in the food court.

Anyway, one vender has a deep fryer, everything he sold was deep fried and covered in ketchup if salty, powered sugar if sweet.

Did you know you can deep fry Oreos? I didn't. Now I do. Apparently, it's not just a novelty. You really are supposed to eat that shit. Don't get me wrong, I love Oreos, but deep fried? How are you going to dunk a deep fried Oreo in a glass of milk? I just gets your milk greasy.

There's an image - greasy milk, straight from Florida Cows!