Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
Berkeley Cafe Serves Up Scones with a Side of Racism, Says Comedian W. Kamau Bell
http://www.eastbayexpress.com/WhatTheFork/archives/2015/01/29/berkeley-cafe-serves-up-scones-with-a-side-of-racism-says-comedian-w-kamau-bellElmwood Cafe in Berkeley found itself sunny-side-down today after Berkeley-based comedian W. Kamau Bell wrote a blog post titled: "Happy Birthday! Have Some Racism from Elmwood Cafe!"
In the post, Bell recounts how he went to Elmwood on January 26 (Bell's birthday) to meet his wife (who is white) and a group of her white friends, and was treated rudely and asked to leave the restaurant, because an employee thought he was harassing the group, and trying to "sell them something." Ironically, he had just bought a children's book, The Case for Loving, about the couple whose lawsuit led to the Supreme Court's decision to strike down the ban on interracial marriages, and was showing the book to his wife and her friends. He describes what happened in the blog post as follows:...
Elmwood took to Facebook to apologize for the incident today, writing (they deleted it later) that they were "absolutely horrified to read about the account of the event that took place this Monday. We have zero tolerance for racism. We want to find out exactly what happened and take all steps necessary to rectify the situation."
But the apology may have come too late. Dozens of users took to Facebook and Yelp to give the restaurant a poor rating, and to air their dissatisfaction with the alleged treatment of Bell. Some of the reviews included: "Shameful. Mistakes happen, and one employee does not represent an entire establishment....but your silence speaks volumes. I'll be posting Kamau's article on FB, and encouraging more people to leave reviews." And "Sad, sad, sad the way this management has failed to address a community concern. No waffles are that good. Especially when served with a racist scowl."
In the post, Bell recounts how he went to Elmwood on January 26 (Bell's birthday) to meet his wife (who is white) and a group of her white friends, and was treated rudely and asked to leave the restaurant, because an employee thought he was harassing the group, and trying to "sell them something." Ironically, he had just bought a children's book, The Case for Loving, about the couple whose lawsuit led to the Supreme Court's decision to strike down the ban on interracial marriages, and was showing the book to his wife and her friends. He describes what happened in the blog post as follows:...
Elmwood took to Facebook to apologize for the incident today, writing (they deleted it later) that they were "absolutely horrified to read about the account of the event that took place this Monday. We have zero tolerance for racism. We want to find out exactly what happened and take all steps necessary to rectify the situation."
But the apology may have come too late. Dozens of users took to Facebook and Yelp to give the restaurant a poor rating, and to air their dissatisfaction with the alleged treatment of Bell. Some of the reviews included: "Shameful. Mistakes happen, and one employee does not represent an entire establishment....but your silence speaks volumes. I'll be posting Kamau's article on FB, and encouraging more people to leave reviews." And "Sad, sad, sad the way this management has failed to address a community concern. No waffles are that good. Especially when served with a racist scowl."
Boy, oh boy, are they ever lucky FXX canceled his show!