Although African-Americans are considered one of the largest consumer groups in the nation, we are still seen by many — not all — as an undesirable customer base.
That philosophy can be seen in action here in Charlotte; just look at all of the trials and tribulations that black folks have faced over the years when trying to spend their hard-earned money in the Q.C.
My thoughts go back to when the CIAA basketball tournament first came to town. I remember the number of businesses that closed for the weekend; the price gouging; how people with tickets to an event were kept standing in line for hours even though there was plenty of space inside of the venues for people to gather; security and workers looking panicked, even afraid, at the sight of so many black folks; and other offenses. I remember writing about it and wondering why Charlotte would be so averse to hosting affluent African-Americans with copious amounts of discretionary income to dump on the city. But after retailers and venues realized the amount of money that could be made during CIAA, all of a sudden, blacks were welcomed.
In spite of that and the influx of affluent blacks from different parts of the country, Charlotte still doesn’t seem to get this fact, and it befuddles me. The city has a solid black middle-class — not emerging, not evolving, but an established black middle class. But, instead of embracing black customers, many times we are repudiated.
Look at how many instances of drama have occurred, especially in the restaurant/nightclub arena. Most recently, the now-defunct restaurant/bar Therapy was called out for allegedly mistreating black patrons; the restaurant closed in the wake of the highly publicized incident. And The Charlotte Post recently published an article about the new eatery Kalu, which is supposedly a black-owned restaurant, and allegations that the staff discriminated against two black customers. (I called to verify ownership and for an interview, but didn’t received a response as of press time.)
My point is that it seems in 2010, people would realize that money has no color other than green. I have to say, I’ve stopped going out and shopping in Charlotte because I do not feel the level of service and respect matches the money spent in high-end boutiques, salons, retail stores or restaurants. I’ve held my birthday party in other cities for the last five years because I want my friends and family members to be treated well and their money to be valued. While I have been treated extremely well at some Charlotte-area spots — like Apostrophe Lounge, for example — I don’t always want to go to the same places.
I checked in with LaShawnda Becoats, Charlotte city editor of Uptown Magazine (a publication whose co-founder, Len Burnett, published the book Black is the New Green, about affluent African-Americans, in 2010) about the subject and she had some interesting thoughts: “As an observer, there are plenty of African-Americans here with disposable income. Most of the people that are here are transplants from other parts of the country. There is an expectation — with your money comes a certain level of respect and service. When you come to a city like Charlotte and go to high-end stores and aren’t treated well, you take your money elsewhere.” Becoats moved to Charlotte from New York City 15 years ago and loves many things about the city, but not the way that she is sometimes treated at high-end establishments.
“If I’m a Northerner, and I am used to shopping at high-end stores, my money is green, so it doesn’t matter what my skin color is. Often in this city, unless you’re a well-known athlete, politician or business person, you don’t get the same level of customer service,” she continued. “That is what deters people from spending what they would. Retailers need to catch up and realize that you can’t judge a book by its cover.”
Therein lies the rub. The color of money is green, not black. You can’t know a person’s worth by the way that he/she is dressed — and definitely not by skin color. Charlotte needs to get with the times … sooner rather than later would be better.
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This article appears in Dec 21-27, 2010.
Part of the problem might be a result of low levels of tipping and such. I know people like Nsenga are blind to the actual facts on the ground but black folks just don’t tip much or well as a whole. I can see where this would have an effect those whos main income is derived from tips.
To Frank Griffin: Could it be that tipping reflects the level of service received? And when stereotyping prevails, which is obvious from your post, the level of service reflects those stereotypical views. And further you don’t know what columnist Nsenga is blind to and exactly to what “people like her” are you referring?? Just saying…
That is one of many reasons why the overall economy is bad. Retailers are not adapting quickly enough to their customers’ preferences.
No wonder so many restaurants and other businesses are going out of business. Not only is the state restricting business, those in business don’t want to do business. Stereotypes and bad service are costing alot of money.
What blacks don’t understand is that money is a symbol of whiteness. It was never meant to black people to have. When the Jewish elite took over the Federal Reserve System they used blacks to front the civil rights movement to gain power and influence to destroy the country. Now we are on our knees because whites projected their anger onto blacks and other non-white non-Jews instead of the people actually harming them who have been the Jews the whole time.
Now when whites, especially the males, see black people with money it makes them angry because they think we made gains at their expense out of some guilt over slavery. The truth is that Jews tricked white people by using blacks. Blacks are still at the bottom of society overall. Whites ignore that fact and give all their attention to the one black guy with a Lexus and a backyard swimming pool. They’re missing the whole picture.
You have to remember regardless of whether whites are conservative or liberal they both hold blacks in very low esteem. It doesn’t matter how they act on the outside. If you really to see what a white man thinks about a black man, ask him if he would allow his daughter (assuming he has one) to date a black man. Then and only then will you get the entire truth. White men have been emasculated by Jewish feminism and the gains made by other races. They are angry as well they should be but they need to organize and remove the Jewish elite from the thrones of power they have gained through infiltration, blackmail and bribery of sellouts in high places.
I think slavery was enough venting on blacks forever. Of course this won’t happen because it’s easier to beat up and blame the weaker black man than it is to confront the Jewish parasite the white man brought with him from Europe.
Herein lies the rub, even though this article does not specify tipping as stated previously, I know for a fact that disparity in tipping is not “coined” to one race. I know that I always feel obligated to over-tip, because I don’t want anyone to have the opinion that “blacks tip the worse”. I’ve been in situations where I’ve sat with other races, who believe that you should only tip according to the service and no more than 18%. So, this is not a “race” thing, it’s a matter of perception from the individual. On a note that the author made about the elitist stores not willing to offer quality service in Charlotte, I have to agree that this is one of the worst places in receiving quality service when shopping and most of the time (99%), I will walk out of the store and just go somewhere that appreciates my effort and money. One of my wishes is that we Charlotteans (I am an implant from NYC) also, will wise up and realize that we either rise or sink together if we live in this great city of Charlotte.
Journalism is suppose to be fair and balanced. Oftentimes fair and balanced is not the case in today’s media. If I were to write this article as a person not witnessing the incident, I would gather information first. Gone are the days of cross references and fact checking. If I were a journalist I would check the secretary of state to find ownership of a business http://www.secretary.state.nc.us/corporations/Corp.aspx?PitemId=8944887. I would also contact the one making the accusation as well as the one accused. If there was an article written by another source, I would contact the source to see if there was any follow up by the accused as well. For example, The Charlotte Post wrote an article on Kalu on December 9, 2010, see attached link http://www.thecharlottepost.com/index.php?category=Life%20and%20Religion&refno=3197&src=news Then and only then would I publish my story (commentary).
No one likes to be accused of being racist. Its very damaging to one’s integrity.
Actually I do know what topics Nsenga is blind too. I have read many thoughtless articles from this woman over the years, so I know her pretty good actually. I have had black waiters tell me black people don’t tip well so I think I am speaking empirically not just stereotypically. “like her” refers to out of touch people. Drug addicts will swear up and down that they are not hooked even when it is obvious to the world that they are. Nsenga fall into this state when it comes to black people. She ignores the flaws and constantly makes excuses for their behavior even when it’s not warranted. Defending the Jenna 6 would be a prime example. The first step in fixing a problem is to first admit that there is a problem. Nsenga is obviously so very far away from actually being able to help the black community as a result.
All races of people have been slaves. Blacks do not have a corner on the market. I also have no guilt from black slavery in the USA. My grandparent were not even in America when that was going on like the majority of Americans today do not have any sin regarding it. As for keep a brother down, how do you explain the exceptional performance of Asians in America. The Asians score better on tests and make more money on average than white America. How did/do the Asians get away with this when Whitey is obviously trying to keep them down?
I work with a black man that works much harder than me and I have nothing but great things to say about him. If I meet you I will judge you on you. This does not make the general truths about a race(culture would be a better word) go away of course.
Jews tend to be shrewd biz people and I actually respect that.
I also do not think Nsenga is a good sample to judge any community by. How many people from any community has had the time and money to get an advanced degree in a trivial major. That’s usually reserved for the well off.
I would like to see a real life test at an average eating place where they record the times by race and see how the cards fall. This would be a good 60 minutes undercover story. We could also judge if the server treated the black customers worse. It would be simple enough to do. Maybe Nsenga could set this up sometime. It would actually be a great national news story no matter how the story turned out. Many people are too lazy to pick up the ball to become famous but maybe Nsenga has got it in her. If she does it, I wish her luck because you might not guessed it but I do not hate Nsenga.
It would be very difficult for a person from the majority to even fathom what minorities experience in this country and how it spans generations. And that is the beauty about being the majority, is that you don’t have to. This is further evidenced by the examples you give that come from one or two of the black people you know which somehow qualifies you as an expert on the minority experience in this country. Talk about OUT OF TOUCH!!! Your examples are as laughable as the comment “I have black friends”. My comments as a person of color come from personal experience,family history-not just a story someone told me once. So, although slavery was abolished hundreds of years ago remember equal civil rights are roughly 50 years old. Currently, unemployment, poverty, incarceration, high school drop out statistics in this country remain to be double for the black community. I find that to be an odd coincidence that the descendents of enslaved people in THIS country suffer most negative socioeconomic/health/education issues at a rate of double than other races today. I have had the opportunity to participate in a number of diversity forums and the over arching theme that majority people such as yourself need to understand is that they DON’T understand and should refrain from sharing thier limited view points on scenarios they can’t relate to or have never experienced. After all what do you really know about being a black person or how it feels to be taunted with a noose. I mean take a minute and think about it, what do you know about having a family member hanged for speaking back to a police officer? What do you know about your parents being forced to sit on the back of the bus? What do you know about the generational affects of being treated like animals then second-class citizens for all of your existence in a country? Although your family may not have been here during slavery, I am sure that there were opportunities available to them when they arrived to this country that were never available to blacks born and raised in the country. Herein lies why you could never understand. Being part of the majority race in this country automatically entitles you to certain advantages. You don’t recognize them because they have always been there. So to comment on a minority’s experience using your majority view is completely out of place. Just saying…
What I say does not require me to be black.
I tell you black people don’t tip well As a whole not as individuals.
I tell you black people represent an out sized proportion of criminals in prison.
I tell you black children are failing in their schools at a higher rate than other races.
I tell you out of wedlock births are skyrocketing in the black community.
These things are facts that do not require me to be black.
I tell you the black community has a problem and you babble on about slavery. If you studied history at all you would know that many of these problems I mentioned above were not a problem 50 years ago so SLAVERY DOES NOT EXPLAIN IT!
Out of wedlock births was just slightly above that of whites and children in Harlem could get a great education. Just read Thomas Sowell who EXPERIENCED these things himself.
Enough with the excuse making. You sound like a teenager that says to their parents that they just don’t understand.
Grow up and grow a pair. Just saying…
You can say whatever you want to, it is your right! However, what you say means very little when you have a very narrow and limited point of reference on the subject of which you speak. This article was written from a black person’s point of view about how they are serviced/not serviced in the high-end retail market in Charlotte. So, your opinion on black people’s tipping behavior, black community problems, and whether or not they are affected by slavery are off topic from the article and out of your range of experience. But, it is not your fault. Ignorance is bliss. Further, parents have been teenagers before so they do have a point of reference against a complaining teenager. You haven’t been black before, have you? There is no excuse here, just fact. You DON’T understand and will never! So, you grow up!
I am all for violence, racism, and personal attacks. That is the internet way.
Don’t be a Democrat.
Vote Trump 2020 to save America from angry negroes.
Roy Cooper owned Slaves.
I am amazed at the ignorance on this blog. Money is not a symbol of Whiteness, that’s garbage. Africans before coming to the Western Hemisphere had plenty of wealth in the form of gold, silver, and cattle, among other things. The problem is not JEWS who used blacks and the CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT to destroy America, that’s nonsense. The problem is that the Children of Israel left the HOLY LAND black throughout various dispersions over a 2500 year period of time, and came back WHITE, due to their disobedience and defiance of GOD and his COMMANDMENTS. But now the Most High is waking us up and bringing us back to him, but it’s a gradual process, because he clearly said he would correct us in measure. Before we cal all come back unto him as a collective, we got to clean up so much mess. It does no good for all of us to join an Israelite congregation and practice TORAH, and we still haven’t unlearned all the other garbage. Most Israelites are still holding onto false deities and false doctrines, still got poor eating habits, still drinking, smoking, and doing all types of other garbage that the FATHER don’t condone, including a lot of the leadership in these Israelite congregations ain’t right. The KOY in Israel today as well as around the globe has fallen apart and is in a state of disarray and confusion because of so much sin and unrighteousness on behalf of the people and the leadership. Yet they’ve lied to the world claiming this is HEAVEN and PARADISE and the KINGDOM OF GOD. The community there has been full of sin and ungodliness from it’s inception. Many videos on YOUTUBE expose horrific things that have taken place there in the community for far too long. What kind of Messiah allows his top leaders to exploit and abuse the saints of GOD? What type of Messiah allows so much wickedness and evil to take place right under his nose for years and years, even decades? What type of Messiah allows and even encourages people to worship him as GOD? What type of MESSIAH lies to the world and says this garbage is HEAVEN? THE VILLAGE OF PEACE IS REALLY THE HAUNTED HOUSE. BEN AMMI is dead now, going on 7 years, and he’s the one who talked about EVERLASTING LIFE. Now I love the Community there in Israel, it’s full of so many beautiful brothers and sisters, some of the best people on EARTH, but that leadership and some of them old heads, no good. They don’t teach from the book that much because if they did, right away people would question things. Knowing the Holy Scriptures for yourself keeps you from being naive and gullible. The horror stories I’ve heard coming out of the community have been disturbing and heartbreaking. Because the community itself is a beautiful thing but that leadership and its abuse and exploitation of the people is so horrific that I can’t condone that and I can’t ignore it. People I know personally have been hurt by that leadership and exploited and taken advantage of by that leadership, and that don’t sit well with me at all. Elders in the Community have been hurt by the leadership, that’s wrong. That’s not okay with me, one bit. So before YAH can bring his people back fully, both HE AND HIS PEOPLE GOT TOO MUCH MESS to clean up, because there ain’t no way is he bring Israelites back unto him in OUR FOOLISH STATE. Before we all can learn his way of life fully, we got too much garbage to unlearn first. But overtime, I know according to SCRIPTURE that at the appointed time, WE WILL GET THERE. HALLELUYAH, SHALOM.
There is a lot of stupidity on this blog. Money is not a symbol of Whiteness and no JEWS didn’t use blacks in the CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT to destroy America, not at all true. The real Jews, actually the Original Hebrew Israelites, Biblical Children of Israel, left The Holy Land Black and came back White due to Colonialism and global White Supremacy, but primarily because of Ancient Israel’s disobedience to the MOST HIGH. You Black America, are the Children of Israel who disobeyed your daddy’s instructions, is he kicked y’all black asses out of his house. He scattered us throughout the 4 corners of the earth in several captivities where you’ve suffered immensely over the last 2,500 years, and now he’s waking us up and calling us back unto him and his way of life. He said in his word that he will correct you in measure. He ain’t doing it all at once, he is doing a little bit at a time over several generations. Before we as a people can return fully as a collective unto YAH YISRAEL, he has to clean up so much mess. Before we can all learn the ways of our GOD and how we wants us to all live, we got way too much garbage to unlearn first. One of the first things he got to work on with us is changing our diet, how we eat and the things we’re doing. Drinking, Smoking, Drug Abuse, Bad Eating Habits, Unclean Living Conditions, Inappropriate Dress Codes, Ungodly Sexual Habits and Sexual Immorality, Bad Parenting, Lack of Personal Responsibility, and just outright Immoral and Indecent Behavior. On top of that, worshipping false GODS too. Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Catholicism, Judaism, and every type of ISM under the sun. I’m guilty of all these things myself and much more, not no homo business, cause that ain’t my get down, but I’m a sinner like anyone else. More black people in this country are becoming vegetarian and vegan and practicing plant based eating, and creating plant based businesses and other businesses around health and wellness. More of us are starting grocery CO-OPs, which is group economics, and are beginning to take their lives back. This is a gateway back unto the lifestyle of YAH. African people before coming to the Western Hemisphere and being conquered by foreign nations, had money and had wealth in the form of GOLD, SILVER, & CATTLE, among other things. So for one that money wasn’t meant for blacks to have and is a symbol of WHITENESS is totally foolish.