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Archive of Thoughtlessness - April '04 |
| Apr. 01, 2004 |
 A few years back an Asian friend of mine was working for a huge non-profit
organization that will remain nameless. One day a Hispanic coworker loudly
announced that the night before she had sent out for "Chinky" food. My
friend soon found herself actually having to explain to the woman that the
word "Chink" is offensive to Asians (Yes, including the Japanese and
the Koreans)."I'm not calling anybody a 'Chink'" the Hispanic woman protested "The Food was 'Chinky'". Frustrated, my friend turned to the only weapon left in her arsenal of logic. "How would you like it if I said that last night I sent out for 'Spick' food?" The Hispanic woman angrily stormed off in the direction of her supervisor's office. One week later my friend found herself sitting in a mandatory Sensitivity Awareness class. So falls the Coliseum. My point? I have two, actually. The first is to let the folks at the national magazine where I'm up for the job of assistant editor know that I can pad out a story. The second was to set up this hastily written piece of crap about Chink's. Philadephians who don't actually reside in or anywhere near Philadelphia may not be familiar with the Chink's controversy, so allow me to provide a little background. Chink's is the name of an eatery (a steak shop) on Torresdale Avenue - and also that of a barbershop at 59th and Osage (but we'll get to that later) - whose name has, not surprisingly, pissed off a lot of Asian-Americans living in the area. So why would an eatery (or any place, for that matter) be called Chink's? Well, it turns out that "Chink" was the nickname of owner. To be honest, when I first heard about all this, I thought it was an honest misunderstanding. I thought that the guy's last name must've been something like "Chinkstein" - hence the nickname "Chink"- and that the Asian-American community (although well intentioned) might be overreacting a little. I hate it when I'm wrong. The owner's name was Sam Sherman (he died in 1997) and he was a white guy who picked up the nickname "Chink", at the age of six, because of his almond-shaped eyes. I know all this thanks to a letter that his widow, Mildred (yes, her name is Mildred) wrote to the Philadelphia Daily News. A letter that should've, by all rights, been posted in The 'Tard Write Zone. In this letter, Mildred pointed out that her late husband was proud of his nickname and that it even appears on his grave. That's right, somewhere out there there's a tombstone with the word "Chink" carved into it. White people have had a long and troubled history when it comes to racial sensitivity. So maybe the debacle involving Chink's - the eatery - should surprise anyone. I always thought that African-Americans, having been the victims of prejudice, would show a little more respect for other groups. Again, I hate it when I'm wrong. The other Chink's - the barbershop - is owned by an African-American. It was named after a barber who was murder a few years back. As in the case of the steak shop owner, "Chink" the barber picked up his nickname from his "chinky" eyes. I really don't want to live anymore. Should both Chink's change their names? Hell yeah. But that's up to the present owners and I'm sure that, once people start boycotting the places, they'll see the light of day. Hey, even though I'm not, I look Jewish. If I opened a restaurant called The Happy Kike would I expect Jews to eat there? Sure I would. Those people love to dine out. Especially on "Chinky" food.  Congrats to my friend, Darren, for landing on the cover of this week's PW. You can read all about his adventures here:http://www.philadelphiaweekly.com/ I know that today is April Fool's Day and that many of you were expecting me to do something like I did last year (ie. The "Gothic Beekeeper" homepage.) Due to circumstances beyond my control, I didn't have time to get anything ready this year. Sorry. Oh, Hell, there's always next year. Ms. Jennifer Fitzgerald Presents:  Asia - Asia If the above word looks like ippojshit to you, then you need to go here and download the SPIONIC font for either MAC or PC. Dude. |