We Eat Other Things Too…
We Eat Other Things Too
Panel 1
[Image] A food court. A woman and her son looking displeased on one side of the food court. On the other side, a smiling security guard.
Panel 2
[Image] Security guard speaking to the woman and her son.
Security Guard: Hi! If nothing here suits you…
Panel 3
[Image] The security guard, smiling.
[Caption] Appropriate:
Security Guard: Is there something you’re looking for in particular?
Panel 4
[Image] The Security Guard, still smiling.
[Caption] Inappropriate
Security Guard: There is a Chinese place where they make fried rice and all sorts of other Asian cuisine!
Full story
The other night my son and I were wandering around the mall after seeing a movie. Nothing in the food court appealed to us, so we tried the pub across the way. Unfortunately, my son, though we only wanted food, is still not of age so we were turned away. The security guard at the mall noticed us walking back and forth and tried to be helpful.
At this point I should state that I am Asian and my son is mixed Caucasian and Asian.
Right, so anyways, this friendly security guard comes up to us and kindly says, ‘if you cross the road, there is a Chinese place where they make fried rice and all sorts of other Asian cuisine if nothing here suits you.”
Bless his heart he was trying to help. But honestly, I didn’t really know how to take that . For crying out loud, we do eat more than Chinese food!
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I get this sometimes too! I get that the intention is nice, but it comes across kinda racist. It’s still judging me solely on my color.
Why is the woman drawn with a chopstick in her hair to indicate she’s Asian? Surely there would be a more appropriate and less offensive way for the artist to draw her?
We ask all of our authors how they would like to be illustrated – in this case the hairstyle is part of the way she described herself, and that is why she is illustrated this way.