Racial BS at Journeys Kids

[BettaDragon]

I feel weird posting to rants in two days but last night was a rough night. After all the BS with my friend's mom, my friends took me out to the mall to get my mind off it. Once we were done wandering around we sat down on the bench marked in this map of the mall.

I marked off the stairs and bench because they weren't on there. The distance between where I was sitting and the Journeys Kids was a good 10-20 feet. So I'm sitting there with my boyfriend, Cris, my friend Drew and his friend Deanna, and my friend Dave and we're all just calmly hanging out in a spot where people commonly hang out. My boyfriend is black and I'm white so we do normally get a bunch of dirty looks and snickers at us on a fairly frequent basis and we're kind of used to that by now because we've been going out for two and a half years. I kissed him briefly (nothing graphic or long) and all of a sudden we start hearing the girls behind the counter talking and we hear "white girl" being said repeatedly. Cris turned around and saw that four or five girls behind the counter were staring directly at us giggling and snickering. He told me and I looked over and saw. At first I brushed it off but then it went on for over five minutes afterwards. I got my stuff and before I left I gave them the finger (which I now know was a pretty stupid thing to do). This one girl walks out and starts cursing me off, saying I'm disrespectful for kissing in front of a "kids" store (no one was in it and since when is screaming curses any better), and calling me ugly. My boyfriend thought she was going to hit me and had to get in between the two of us. I said, "Whatever, I'm getting security on you." Then she made the stupid mistake of saying repeatedly, "I'm gonna f*** you up!" Cris, Drew, and Dave all had to drag me away. I went to security and at first they did nothing. Then we met up with Cris's parents. They saw me upset and Cris told them what happened. When they heard that it was people working at the store that did this they snapped. Cris's mom is a business teacher so she has contacts with the better business bureau and she knows all the ins and outs of filing as many complaints as she can. They talked to the mall security and got a formal complaint filled out. The girl lied, said I was standing in the door way, passionately kissing and she came over and talked to us politely. So the mall report was just filed as a miscellaneous report. However we're filing a ton more complaints and we're trying to get the girls working there at the time fired. So this is a warning to any interracial couples in the NJ area, don't shop at the Journeys Kids in the Deptford Mall because they're racist, violent, and rude.

 

[Greyscale_Geckos]

I am so sorry that happened to you! People can be such jerks.

Honestly, what is so wrong with interracial dating? My boyfriend is Japanese and I've gone through situations that sound exactly like the one you described above. People will always stare at us, laugh, and then start talking dirty right in front of us.

I've had people of all races glare at me, point fingers at myself and boyfriend, curse at us, use racial slurs at us, and even follow us and taunt us with remarks that should never be heard by anyone's ears.

I think the lesson is that people are down right jerks, and honestly, I don't blame you for flipping them off.

If nothing gets done about it, just threaten to sue the mall or the store. Trust me, that will get some attention on your report. Mall officials will ignore something unless the mall or one of its store's reputations hangs in the balance. What they did was wrong and racist, and those girls should be fired.

 

[wilomn]

Or, let's look at it another way.

First, who you date is no ones business but your own. Period.

However, when you antagonize an idiot, ie the girl behind the counter, do you REALLY expect anything more than naked aggression as a responce?

Had YOU bucked up and just walked away, after all why defend anything to a cretin such as she, none of this would have happened.

If you're used to it then you must know the best way to deal with someone as stupid as that is to ignore them. Getting someone to pay attention then to you and then ignoring them as if they don't exist is an art. Work on it and you'll be surprised how effective it can be at getting a message across.

If you want to play with stupid people, stupid things are going to happen, as you have evidenced here.

You're smarter, you should know better. Blaming the store has NOTHING to do with you or the girl. Blaming the girl is you shirking your responsibility.

After all, you said yourself you knew you shouldn't have flipped her off.

Work on your temper and things will be smoother.

It sucks that it happened but you've got to know that you and your boyfriend are targets for idiots and the world is full of them. Remember that and this won't happen again.

 

[The Sunset Gang]

I am sorry that this happened to you. It sucks that you can't even be in your own mall without being made fun of. I am so sorry.

 

[Mel&Keith]

I'm one of those people that gets nauseous when I see people kissing in public, I was even for the ban of holding hands in schools. It sounds like the whole thing got out of control thanks to all parties involved. The girls in the store were talking amongst themselves, you just happened to overhear them. Kind of like how you were kissing your boyfriend and they just happened to see because you did it right in front of them. You offended them, they offended you. One day they'll be mature enough to not gossip and you'll be mature enough to not be kissing in front of children's stores. Look at it from both points of view.

 

[BettaDragon]

Or, let's look at it another way.

First, who you date is no ones business but your own. Period.

However, when you antagonize an idiot, ie the girl behind the counter, do you REALLY expect anything more than naked aggression as a responce?

Had YOU bucked up and just walked away, after all why defend anything to a cretin such as she, none of this would have happened.

If you're used to it then you must know the best way to deal with someone as stupid as that is to ignore them. Getting someone to pay attention then to you and then ignoring them as if they don't exist is an art. Work on it and you'll be surprised how effective it can be at getting a message across.

If you want to play with stupid people, stupid things are going to happen, as you have evidenced here.

You're smarter, you should know better. Blaming the store has NOTHING to do with you or the girl. Blaming the girl is you shirking your responsibility.

After all, you said yourself you knew you shouldn't have flipped her off.

Work on your temper and things will be smoother.

It sucks that it happened but you've got to know that you and your boyfriend are targets for idiots and the world is full of them. Remember that and this won't happen again.

Once she threatens physical harm it's the store's problem. Stores shouldn't have people like that working at them anyway.

 

[BettaDragon]

I'm one of those people that gets nauseous when I see people kissing in public, I was even for the ban of holding hands in schools. It sounds like the whole thing got out of control thanks to all parties involved. The girls in the store were talking amongst themselves, you just happened to overhear them. Kind of like how you were kissing your boyfriend and they just happened to see because you did it right in front of them. You offended them, they offended you. One day they'll be mature enough to not gossip and you'll be mature enough to not be kissing in front of children's stores. Look at it from both points of view.

If they made comments just about the kissing then that's one thing. It's the racial comments and threats that are the problem.

 

[Mel&Keith]

But if you hadn't been kissing, would they have said anything?

 

[wilomn]

Once she threatens physical harm it's the store's problem. Stores shouldn't have people like that working at them anyway.

I will ASSume you are very young and not aware that here, in America, we are free to think what we wish, much as you are free, here in America, to kiss whomever you wish.

Talk is just talk. Unless she actually laid hands on you, it was just talk that YOU, no matter how much you want to think otherwise, brought on.

You flipped them off first, upping the ante of the gossiping morons.

If you expected anything less, well, I would go into the intelligence and lack thereof in todays youths but I'll just let you figure it out yourself.

Accepting responsibility as well as blame is tough. But, when it's the right thing to do, it's the right thing to do. Anything else is just passing the buck.

 

[moosassah]

I'm always surprised when I hear stories of racial bs. I have 2 boys, 5 & 7, I so hope that they will be the generation that grows up thinking of people as people & not colors. My parents grew up in the 60s & still have a lot of racial bs come out of their mouths.

You're in a tough spot. If you want to be accepted as just a couple, you need to act like that. Forget that you are black & white. Stand above the people who haven't figured out yet that they're just people too. Hopefully your improved behavior will leave a better impression on the people you come across in the future.

 

[BettaDragon]

I did accept the blame when I said it was stupid of me to flip them off. I made this rant simply to show that the people in the world are stupid when it comes to racial things but thanks a lot everyone for turning it around like I'm the bad person. I admit it was a stupid thing for me to do. All I did was flip her off. While she and her friends behind the counter of a store making hateful racial comments while they were working, while they were supposed to be acting as professionals and that is completely unacceptable. They were making these comments before I even did anything to them. And somehow my quick innocent kiss in front of a kids store is worse than her swearing and racial comments IN the kids store. Regardless of what I did, which I know is stupid, this girl is sitting there being hateful and racist with her comments. When you act like that while working you deserve to be fired. You cannot act like that to a potential customer. Though to be honest, I think they would have come out to do something similar whether I flipped them off or not. The majority (not all of them, I have a lot of friends that work there) of the people that work in that mall are trash and have no class and it really wouldn't surprise me if they did come out even if I didn't provoke them. In fact I would have been shocked if they didn't. Once again, thanks guys for making it seem like me kissing my boyfriend and giving the girl the finger is worse than that girl's behavior.

 

[Mel&Keith]

I said that everyone acted immaturely. Unfortunately people in the world are stupid about lots of things.

 

[BettaDragon]

I said that everyone acted immaturely. Unfortunately people in the world are stupid about lots of things.

Yes they are. At least I accepted my blame.

 

[moosassah]

Once again, thanks guys for making it seem like me kissing my boyfriend and giving the girl the finger is worse than that girl's behavior.

That was no where near my intention. But I'd sure avoid the mall in the future.

 

[Kimjorg]

I don't making you feel bad was part of anyone's intentions.

However by you saying things like this, "think they would have come out to do something similar whether I flipped them off or not. The majority (not all of them, I have a lot of friends that work there) of the people that work in that mall are trash and have no class and it really wouldn't surprise me if they did come out even if I didn't provoke them. In fact I would have been shocked if they didn't." You are proving that your comments are just as bad as some teenage girl saying "white girl". Discrimination is discrimination. It doesn't just occur by calling people white or black, but can also come by calling people other deragotory names such as trash or them having no class. I know at the mall next to our house if you flip someone off no matter what the circumstances are before the other party could have time to react you would immediatly be asked to leave.

"Yes" they commited the worse of the 2 actions but you have to look at it from both sides. I know that if some chick flipped me off I wouldn't behave so perfectly either, and I am sure you probably wouldn't either.

Best of luck in whatever action you try to bring upon these girlsand the company that they wrk for. BTW: where was the store manager during all of this?

 

[Ipsl]

So Im ixrd black and white and most of the girls I date a white. So I know what you mean about people judgeing you and saying stuff.

 

[BettaDragon]

I don't making you feel bad was part of anyone's intentions.

However by you saying things like this, "think they would have come out to do something similar whether I flipped them off or not. The majority (not all of them, I have a lot of friends that work there) of the people that work in that mall are trash and have no class and it really wouldn't surprise me if they did come out even if I didn't provoke them. In fact I would have been shocked if they didn't." You are proving that your comments are just as bad as some teenage girl saying "white girl". Discrimination is discrimination. It doesn't just occur by calling people white or black, but can also come by calling people other deragotory names such as trash or them having no class. I know at the mall next to our house if you flip someone off no matter what the circumstances are before the other party could have time to react you would immediatly be asked to leave.

"Yes" they commited the worse of the 2 actions but you have to look at it from both sides. I know that if some chick flipped me off I wouldn't behave so perfectly either, and I am sure you probably wouldn't either.

Best of luck in whatever action you try to bring upon these girlsand the company that they wrk for. BTW: where was the store manager during all of this?

The store manager wasn't there because it was an offset store of a bigger store. I must commend you on saying your point in a valid way. You stated your point very well which I find few people do anymore.

 

[Kimjorg]

Perks of being a marketing major and having to take tons of business related speech classes and stuff!

 

[geckohaven]

racism will be here as long as we have different races living together. many people over look it when it is right under their noses, and many people that say they are not racist are the first ones to pop of something when someone from a different race does something that effects them. i know racism suck because i have to deal with it my entire life. but know matter how hard we try to get rid of it, it is always gonna be here.