Item

Confrontation over mask devolved to Racism at Kingston Coffee House

Title (Dublin Core)

Confrontation over mask devolved to Racism at Kingston Coffee House

Description (Dublin Core)

A Facebook post relaying an incident in which a staff member at a Kingston coffee shop was verbally attacked when she asked a customer why they weren't wearing a mask in keeping with a city policy requiring them indoors.
It reads as follows:
"Is it not enough that business owners have to contend with troubling and uncertain times? Weighing survival of the business and employees against our own health and lives ?
Is it not enough that we have to deal with confusing directives from provincial and municipal levels who on one hand are asking we do our best to open up patios, and serve customers from outside our region and on the other, are asking us to ramp up the sanitation and work for 8 hour shifts with masks on ?
Is it not enough that following the protocols leads to slower service and irate customers who then leave a lasting 1 star review on google that impacts what's left of the business?
Apparently NOT.
We at Kingston Coffee House are deeply hurt and angered by what one of our staff member had to face this morning. She is from India and has been with us since 2018.
@KFLAPH has made masks mandatory starting from today and we are imposing the same on every customer who enters the premises. One caucasian woman entered Kingston Center location today and was asked by our employee to wear a mask.
In return, she waited for other customers to leave and started banging the tables and abusing the employee by saying :
'you are a bloody Indian who should not be here, your mom and dad haven't raised you well'.
NO , THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE!
As a BIPOC owned business, we would do our best to track her down and make her responsible. Bringing race into the picture was uncalled for and the ensuing racial slurs were horrid and inhuman.
You can thank your lucky stars Karen that I wasnt personally at the store. You would've got more than your fair share of an earful had I been on site.
( We understand not everyone wants to follow rules and they are entitled to their opinions. We are only trying to enforce what has been made a guideline. PLEASE BE POLITE to every person trying to serve you in these confusing and challenging times. You have to wear a mask for a few minutes when you come in, our staff is wearing it ALL DAY ! )
@ Kingston Coffee House Inc."
confrontation, mask, racism, law, service industry

Date (Dublin Core)

June 27, 2020

Creator (Dublin Core)

Kingston Coffee House Inc.

Contributor (Dublin Core)

Hope Gresser

Type (Dublin Core)

Post

Link (Bibliographic Ontology)

https://www.facebook.com/KingstonCoffeeHouse/posts/967824210352783

Publisher (Dublin Core)

Facebook

Controlled Vocabulary (Dublin Core)

English Conflict
English Food & Drink
English Health & Wellness
English Race & Ethnicity

Curator's Tags (Omeka Classic)

mask
confrontation
racism
coffee
service industry
Kingston
Ontario
Canada

Contributor's Tags (a true folksonomy) (Friend of a Friend)

confrontation
mask
racism
law
service industry

Collection (Dublin Core)

en Foodways
en Black Voices
en Survivor Stories
Service Industry
Asian & Pacific Islander Voices

Linked Data (Dublin Core)

Refugee advocates beseech bylaw to 'warn and inform' after man handed $880 fine

Date Submitted (Dublin Core)

07/06/2020

Date Modified (Dublin Core)

07/19/2020
10/02/2020
03/28/2021

Item sets

Covid 19

This item was submitted on July 6, 2020 by Hope Gresser using the form “Share Your Story” on the site “A Journal of the Plague Year”: https://www.covid-19archive.org/s/archive

Click here to view the collected data.

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