Ah, the racial receipt. It drops into our lives when we least expect it. A reader named Grace recently encountered one during a recent visit to a bar in New York City. Upon receiving her check at Faces & Names Lounge & Bar in midtown, she noticed that she had been identified simply as "Asian Girl."
Grace tweeted that when she called out her waitress about the receipt, she responded, "I can't be racist. I dated an Asian guy." (As a general rule of life, let it be known that "I can't be racist, I dated a _______ girl/guy" is not an appropriate or compelling response in any situation.)
Look at receipt. Call out @facesnames waitress on her racism. Response: "I'm not a racist. I dated an Asian guy." pic.twitter.com/HFSeTeoaUn
— Grace Lee (@nycgrace) June 19, 2016
What's the big deal, you say. Isn't "Asian Girl" an accurate description of the patron in question. And yes, this is arguably better than "Lady Chinky Eyes" or "Ching Chong Lee" -- actual terms that have used to identify Asian customers. But you have to wonder if every patron at Faces & Names gets identified according to their race. Can we assume that on a given night, we'll also find receipts that say "WHITE GIRL"?
Or are us Asians just special?