Next episode, Quickly... NEXT EPISOOOOOOOOODE! (quote from homestarrunner) click here to watch!
Soo, as promised, I am going to talk about my personal boycott against the international boba and milk tea and whatever chain from China, Quickly. Oh yeah. And I cut my hair :D. So anyhways, sometime around last semester or something, maybe during summer, I had been laid off from my catering job with Spartan Catering (ugh… terrible job…) so I was going around looking for jobs. I’m sure you can see where this is going, but I’ma’ tell the story anyways. So I went everywhere in downtown, even to Johnny Rocket’s. I applied to all the Targets and cafes and restaurants in town, and got a few bites, but mostly rejection because of the ever-so-lame hindrance of an economy we’re runnin’ heah. I went down to Japan town, practiced my Japanese, and got a few more bites, and conversations with management, even! They said they liked me, and would call me when some positions opened up.
I handed out many resumes, and adjusted my tie over 4,000 times. Or more like 40. But still, my fingers were getting tired. So, after a long day, I decided to go home and rest, and wait for calls. On the way back, I noticed that I had forgotten to stoop by Quickly to try my luck. Yeah. I know. Black guy at Quickly would be funny, right? But I wanted to try everywhere. So I stepped in the door, vest and tie all neat and crisp, shining so bright I blinded an asian kid drinking his milk tea, and boiled his drink. Everyone turned around and looked to see where this amazing source of awesome had ben emanating from. Girls fainted, birds tweeted… and then I tucked my ego back into my pocket and stopped telling the darn story in a contrived and exaggerated manner. So I step up to the counter, striding long and high, confident, good posture, and in a competent, respectuful voice, I say, “Hi, I was wondering if you would be hiring any time soon.” It looked like the cashier was about to say yes, but she stopped.
“Yes?” I uttered, trying to help fuel her train of thought. It seemed as though someone had derailed it, and had left a wake of casualties.
“Hold on one minute, okay?” She blurped as she walked toward the back.
“Sure, okay!”
So I waited at the front a second, and started watching what they had on TV. It looked like another pop boy band that had taken the top spot on the Asian charts again. Or a rap girl group. I could NOT tell the difference. All I knew is that they sounded like a mix between the Pussy Cat Dolls and N’SYNC. Revolted and confused, I swing around to look back behind the counter. The smell of milk teas and delicious fruity smoothies filling the air, I thought about how it might be to work in a place like this. I envisaged me, making drinks, and handing them to smiling customers in an efficient, timely manner, and getting $20 tips because of my amazing smile, and perfectly level eyes. (Tucks ego back into pocket)
So finally, I her in view, talking with the manager, another Chinese or Asian woman, who seems to be asking her who it was, finger jabbing around, motioning with her nose. I thought it funny, because Haitians motion with their lips a lot. So Then the girl points me out, and waves. She looks at me, smiling, and shining, and unexpectedly, her face turns sour, and she averts her gaze back to the cashier, shaking her head, and walking away. I bursted into proverbial flames. As the cashier returned, she came to the counter, and told me, “No, not right now.”
“Thank you, have a nice day!” I said. Then I turned around, and tossed a grenade into the kitchen. Or at least I wanted to at the moment. I was so upset that someone would do that! Okay, I KNEW that they might not hire me because I’m black, but to do THAT? I mean, it’s wrong to discriminate, but it only pours salty lemon acid on the wound when you’re looking for a job to survive and go to school! So from that day forward, I boycotted Quickly, and every time I am reminded, I discourage people from going. Some agree, some could care less, they just want their stupid milk tea. But why support a business who isn’t supporting us? Why help a company that isn’t EOE (Equal Opportunity Employer), and decides not to help the community by creating less jobs? I suggest checking out a BETTER shop called Hydration, down the street from Jack in the Box, next to Iguana’s (if you’re in the SJSU area). I’ll blog about it later.
This is Athena. I'm cool wit'er
Writing this article, I got thinking. I remember talking to a few friends of mine who were Chinese, and somehow the conversation got into dating and relationships. I was explaining to a friend of mine in my Chinese 1A class why I was taking chinese: because I didn’t like not knowing it. And I didn’t like when people would look at me, and start a conversation. I knew what they were talking about… That guy, Josh, 我的中文同学 in my Chinese 1A class told me, “Yeah, people just coming from Asia can tend to be a little racist. Like my dad. He told me ‘It’s okay to marry a white girl’, but you can’t marry a black girl.” Also, Athena (Check her blog in my links), another Chinese friend of mine told me about HER dad who told her “If you date a black guy, I will disown you.” or something along the lines of that.
This is Peter. I'm coo witim. Ano TEAM!
I’m not saying I don’t like Chinese people, because that obviously isn’t the case. Peter and Athena, and other Chinese people I’m cool with can vouch. I’m also not saying that all Chinese people are racist, and/or have black people. But I AM questioning why so many of them love white people so much, and abhor the thought of black people dating their children, and working in their Quicklys. Again, I’m not saying all of them do, but I do realize that a lot of them do. It’s so ignorant and close minded. But whatever, I’ve accepted, that I won’t BE accepted by everyone, and that my lot in life (to become Japan’s biggest design influence) is… pretty darn near impossible. But not impossible. Tell me your thoughts on this, whether you’re Chinese, Black, or you just want to say something. I’m all ears!
It's okay, Quickly. Some day... SOME day... you'll be wishing I were your designer. These are the things that drive me to be phenomenal.
Jeiji's Blog 