I have personally experienced prejudice that has greatly disturbed me especially in my town. The town in which I live has re-developed the downtown area with different boutiques. All of these stores are locally owned by white people. There is one boutique that I really enjoy going to because the clothes are so stylish. The owners and workers try to be nice, sometimes overly nice, but the way in which they talk to me makes me feel as if they are judging me. Every time I enter the store I am immediately followed around by a worker and constantly asked if they can help me with something. One particular day, I was shopping for a white shirt for church. I picked up a white shirt that was perfect for our church occasion. When I asked to try it on the sales associate told me that it was not on sale and that there was a rack in the back that had similar styles. This BOTHERED me and I immediately responded! I was not proud of what I said but at that moment I knew that she thought I could not afford the item because of my color. This was the last time I visited the store and I do not recommend anyone to shop there.
I think that I could have handled the situation better if I had asked the associate why she felt that I would want a sales rack item. I believe that this should have been a learning experience for both her and I. I think it would have also been beneficial to speak to the owner concerning the matter because I know I am not the first customer this has happened to. I think that people in general have to STOP stereotyping people based on color! You can not tell a person's socioeconomic status based on their race. Blacks, whites, and every other race have to learn to live in harmony and not categorize people before they get to know them.
Shorlone,
ReplyDeleteSounds like a scene right out of Pretty Woman. It is true that you cannot tell a person's socioeconomic background by the color of their skin. Your story makes me think on a story I heard when I was growing up about a man my father knew of. The man liked to dress in shabby clothes and was very careful with every penny he spent. He would go to the bank and some of the employees would make fun of him when he left because of his appearance they thought he did not have any money. It turns out that the man was filthy rich. But was often treated poorly due to his looks. Although my story is not based on color like yours it goes to show no matter what you cannot judge a book by it's cover. - Jolene Hernandez-Romero
I completely understand how you feel. I too probably would have shared a few unkind words with the employee. But in all honestly, I would have gone back to the store and continued to shop there, just to prove a point. I'm sorry you went through that experience, but I think going through this experience has exposed you to the true reality of how harsh this world could be.
ReplyDeleteHi Shorlone,
ReplyDeleteYou are 100% right on about stereotyping. It is a huge problem in today's society and needs to be stopped or at least decreased a great amount because of the bad influence it is giving to children, teenagers, and a lot of adults to that matter. Stereotyping is ridiculous and is easily made into a habit. It should be everyone's ultimate duty to instill into children they teach how to go about life and to respect everyone around not judging them or putting any kind of stereotype on them.
Shorlone,
ReplyDeleteI do not blame you for getting mad and speaking your mind! I value customer service and feel my money is green and spends just like everyone esle. If a person is going to treat me poorly then hey they don't deserve my hard earned money!