A Tale from A Sporting Goods Store

[MineralMan]

Last year, I was at a local sporting goods store, buying some fishing tackle, as usual. Also in the store was a Hmong man, somewhere around 40 years old. I noticed that he was looking around like he was trying to get someone's attention. There were store employees all over the place, but none of them came to assist the man.

What the heck, I thought. So, I asked the man if I could help him find something. Big smile from the guy. "Do you work here?" I told him that I didn't but I'd still be glad to help another angler find something.

Turns out that he wanted to start fishing, since a lot of his friends were anglers. So, he basically knew nothing. After some questions about what kind of fishing he wanted to do and a getting a general idea of his budget, I spent about an hour with him, helping him to choose a couple of rods and reels, lures, line, and more, including a book on basic angling. I wasn't busy, and I love fishing. In the process, we talked about fishing, and I helped him figure out what he needed from the huge selection in the store. I learned something about his family here and just generally helped a new angler get started with what he needed and within his budget.

The stuff he bought added up to almost $500 (I was keeping a running tally in my head so we didn't exceed what he said he wanted to spend) and he rolled his shopping cart up to the register. In all that time, not a single employee showed up and offered any help or advice.

I shop at another sporting goods store, now, since that one apparently doesn't like Hmong people. What morons! This guy was friendly and I enjoyed the time spent helping him get started with his angling. The store rejected him. How sad!

As a white man, I don't get treated that way. This was an educational experience for me, even though I knew, intellectually, that people are treated differently, depending on many factors. But, you'd think that a store would make some effort to sell a customer something, whatever he looked like. You'd think. Never mind, though. I made a friend at the sporting goods store, and I'm certain they accepted his payment for the goods.

Note: This occurred in Minnesota, where many Hmong have settled. The Hmong enjoy fishing quite a bit, and are part of the angling economy here. The prejudice is very striking.

[asdjrocky]

1. I grew up in a racially mixed neighborhood.

And went to a racially mixed school, of course. For all my life, as long as I've been in my home town anyway, my very best friends have been Black or Latino.

We know this well.

When Tay drives, the odds of us getting pulled over were always higher.

You were quick and observant enough to notice what most white people manage to miss every single day. There is a difference in the way we are treated, and we are a far way from this being a "post racial society."

[MineralMan]

5. It was pretty clear to me why he was being ignored.

The Hmong here are pretty poorly treated in general. This, despite their hard work, strong family values, and eagerness to become part of the community. Pisses me off. I live in a very ethnically diverse neighborhood, and many of my neighbors are Hmong. They're the first ones to offer help if you look like you need some, and I've made some good friends among them.

Sometimes, we're really moronic as a society.

[Froward69]

21. That darned Socialism

runs rampant in communities that care for one another. ;)

[asdjrocky]

36. The Hmong people I've known in my life have always been good people.

I worked in outside sales for a time in my life and one thing it taught me is you can not judge a book by it's cover.

Hope you guys get a chance to cast a line together one day.

[Bigmack]

37. "Hard work"?... I'm prejudiced about the Hmong...

An big extended family was sponsored in our area in rural Washington state. Head of the family must have been a Big Wheel, because they brought the whole family out of Laos, from grannies to babies.

Anyhow, the community helped them with housing and food and generally helped them get started. Included them in the town social stuff. The kids went to school and the men started looking for work.

Figuring I would get some work done around the (small) farm and do a good deed at the same time, I hired three brothers to work for me from time to time. Chong, Brong, and Tong (I am not making those names up) were the hardest guys to employ I ever knew. I could not throw enough work at them. They would get 8 hour jobs done in 4. I needed a long ditch for a water line. I gave them the tools and went to town for feed. They not only were done when I got back, they had figured a way to dig it narrower than I could have... working smart as well as hard. Finally, I had to sit down and make up lists before I would call them.. long lists. I wanted them to have a full 8 hours or whatever.

That lasted about a year. They each got a couple of jobs, and priced themselves right out of the grunt labor class. Then came cars and all the toys of modern America.

The kids started showing up on the honor roll, then as valedictorians and such at the local High School.

So... I'm prejudiced about Hmong. I'm a sucker for people who want to work and educate themselves. I want them living next door. If your community doesn't want them, ours does.

[MineralMan]

43. My wife and I have a vacant, foreclosed house next door to ours.

We share a driveway with it. I want very, very much for a Hmong family to buy it, and that's a likely thing. There are several Hmong families nearby and there is a sort of collective in the Hmong community that makes its own loans to Hmong families who want to buy houses. It's a wonderful thing. The new family will move in and, over a weekend a whole crew of people come in and paint and renovate the house. Food shows up. Everyone eats and laughs, and then they all go home and the new family commences its life in the house.

I'll help any way I can. I've been to a couple of these Hmong housewarming parties and the food is super good. I also know that any Hmong family will be a good neighbor. There have been several looking at the house recently, and someone will no doubt buy it this Spring. Hoorah!

[EmeraldCityGrl]

50. Your community is why...

I'm proud to be a fellow Washingtonian.


:toast:

[Salmonslayer]

77. Interesting that an underprivileged, minorities without much money can

pull themselves up by their boot straps and make it through hard work and study.

Chong, Brong and Tong should be held up as examples of how anyone can improve their situation it in this country with the right attitude.

[LatteLibertine]

2. I waited tables when I attended the University

and I was always impressed by how black folks were shocked at the way I treated them. I frequently received large tips and praise merely for treating them like everyone else, or simply as I would like to be treated. It was nice to know I touched them in a small way and it also made me profoundly sad at times because it made me realize what their usual experience might have been on a real personal level.

On another note, I remember going to a very exclusive department store in New Orleans distinctly dressed down. I was followed by a security guard at a distance who deliberately made himself known the entire time. It made me think.

I'll close by saying thank you for being part of the solution :)

[MineralMan]

10. I wasn't looking for praise, actually. I was just telling a story

that describes something we should all be more aware of as we go through our days. But, you're right. That is the solution. One person at a time has to stop treating people who are different from us in some way differently. That's the point of my story, I guess.

[peacefreak]

3. It sounds like you made a friend for life.

Maybe you should send a copy of this post to the manager of the store.

[MineralMan]

6. Oh, I spoke to the store owner after that man left the store.

I just wanted to explain to him why I wouldn't be spending my usual several hundred dollars a year in his store any longer. He seemed dumbfounded by the whole thing. Didn't get it at all.

I've never run into the guy again, though. It's a big city. His thanks was all the reward I needed for a thoroughly enjoyable hour.

[babylonsister]

4. I commend and applaud your attitude. Thank you for helping

another human being-the employees in that store should be ashamed.

[MineralMan]

7. Heck...I love talking about fishing, so it was fun for me.

You're right. The people in the store were morons. It's a shame that such things can happen.

[blondeatlast]

8. My ex-hubby is Indian. I'm as white skinned as it comes. I've

been in the same stores with him, but not next to him--and he got ignored or treated with visible contempt.

The attitude seems to fade when I join him.

We have so far to go...

[MineralMan]

11. It's so sad.

[Warpy]

9. I've gotten treated exactly the same way at auto parts stores

and I've blown up at one of them and told them exactly how much of a sale they missed by ASSuming any woman in the store was only an appendage of some male who was doing the shopping. Then I went to a junkyard and got the same parts at a third of the price.

Some people are so limited by their ASSumptions that they become virtually blind. You should have told that store to be grateful to you for that sale because they sure as hell wouldn't have made it and where is your commission?

I've also seen people of color waiting at a counter and the counter person turn around and go to me first. Well, my Mum raised me to be polite and I always say the other person was there first and the surprise on everybody's face tells me that doesn't happen often.

I've taken care of a few Hmong people in the hospital and dealt with the extended families. Their culture is an odd one but the people are wonderful. Anyone who snubs them is a fool.

[MineralMan]

13. Yup. I've seen that happen, too. Not all stores are alike, though,

so it's worth hunting around and rewarding the stores who treat people well.

[Warpy]

23. This was the only parts store in a small town

I'd have preferred new parts, but I didn't want to risk a 20 mile drive to the next town in a junker car that needed some pretty important parts, so I went to one of two junkyards. They took me seriously.

Things have gotten better as the years have progressed, though. There has been some progress on the women/auto parts front, at least.

[MineralMan]

30. Hell, just march up to the counter and tell them what you need.

If it's the only parts house in town, you don't have a lot of options. Make them pay attention. The morons!

[Warpy]

32. I tried, they were blind. Completely blind, completely deaf.

However, they did notice when I blew a fit the way only the Irish can blow a fit. I never went back there to see if they cleaned up their act. I went to the next town or to the junkyard. To hell with the lot of them.

[MineralMan]

33. Uff da! Morons abound!

[old mark]

39. My wife always asks me to do any car related stuff, even calling Triple A...

And I have heard some stories from my sister and her Tex-Mex husband that make me pretty unhappy. As well as the times my Jewish wife and I left places when people started talking about the "dirty Jews".
I thought by the 21st century things might have been different.

Warpy, fools we got plenty of...


mark

[Mopar151]

81. I have several friends who are Ms, Goodwrench

And my architecht sister moonlights as a property manager. Ya know what? Their money is green, too. I've worked with several women in industrial settings who more than held up their end.
As to the Hmong - I have little first-hand experience with them - but a bunch of misanthropic shoprats i was dealing with in Wisconson were whinin' up a storm at break one day, about things like whole lawns turned to vegetable gardens and some miscues in indoor horticulture. I'm thinkin' of my grandmothers, bulwarks of the family in the Depression, with their big gardens, scratchin' chickens, and cellars full of home-canned food. I decided my Grams musta been Hmong.

[gratuitous]

12. Puts me in mind of Uncle Freddy

Uncle Freddy had a speech impediment, which in those Depression-era days they called a hare-lip, which gave him a distinctly off-putting lisp. He approached the manager of a department store for a job as a floor salesman. The manager didn’t think he could hire such a person to meet and greet the general public, but Uncle Freddy was persistent and had a winning way. The manager finally decided to put him in Ladies’ Notions, figuring that women wouldn’t approach him anyway.

That afternoon, as he was walking the floor, the manager came into the sporting goods section, where Uncle Freddy was busy selling a complete fishing outfit to some guy. As the manager spied on Uncle Freddy from behind the rack, Uncle Freddy kept selling the guy up, first with fishing tackle, and then finally talking him into buying a drift boat. When the guy left, ringing up a hefty sale, the manager approached Uncle Freddy and congratulating him on such a wonderful sales job.

“But I thought I assigned you to Ladies’ Notions,” said the manager. “What were you doing in Sporting Goods?” Uncle Freddy said the guy had started off in Ladies’ Notions, looking for feminine hygiene products for his wife. Uncle Freddy ventured that “Well sir, since you’re gonna have some free time this weekend, let me ask you: How long has it been since you’ve gone fishing?”

[MineralMan]

15. Wonderful story!

[TxRider]

41. I get treated like that a lot.

I'm a white guy, usually have longish hair that hasn't seen a cut in almost a year, an old T-shirt, old jeans, old sneakers.

I remember walking into a high rent clothing store and the staff were basically drawing straws to see who got to jump on the grenade and talk to me. The old guy who lost made a very nice sale, as I was in need of a few high dollar suits, I was going to be on CNN and dealing with some scenarios where my usual attire just wouldn't do. He scored and I bought a couple of grand worth from him.


Same happened when I went to look for a new car. I was looking at an expensive model, for about 30 minutes before salesman came up(only after I laid down and slid underneath it). When a salesman finally did approach, it was clear his approach was to get rid of me as soon as he could, and appeared to feel trapped by my questioning many aspects of the vehicle. It wasn't until I told him "I'll take it" and he went in to run a credit check that he came back with an ear to ear smile and got very pleasant and quite appeasing.

Same last time I went to buy a house full of furniture, I can walk around for an hour and not be helped. And usually it's only the hungriest salesman, or someone trying to see if they can get me to leave their high end store and start getting pretty bad as grill them on quality of materials etc. Last guy got a $15,000 sale, paid in cash.

These days I have a bit of fun with it, stringing them out like they are totally wasting their time for about as long as I think I can before letting them off the hook with a sale.

Moral is, if there is one, don't assume the unkempt guy in the old T-shirt and jeans is without ample means.. ;) Or anyone for that matter.

[Mopar151]

82. I know a couple scrap dealers like that

Look like the night shift janitor, $5k in cash in their pockets.

[raccoon]

34. That's an old joke. See:

http://www.dotcoy.com/?p=200

[gratuitous]

35. Joke?!

Many of the words in my post are undeniably true, I will have you know.

[Bluenorthwest]

14. Very excellent post

And I do not mean to equate fiction to reality, but you might enjoy the film Grand Torino, by and starring Clint Eastwood. The Hmong community in America is central to the story.

[MineralMan]

19. That was an excellent movie, I agree.

The Hmong have a fascinating culture.

[Froward69]

16. I went to Public School

bussed into "black" areas for elementary school. I am/have a "Mutt" family.

here I am 20 years on and I am appalled at some of the White folk I attended school with. they have become rabid racists as adults... Especially after President Obama took office. or at least they are now revealing themselves.

my favorite is the White folk that moved out to the burbs to "give their children a better chance". now they find they cannot afford to move back into town because urban living has become so desirable.

They are puzzled as to why is it they are upside-down on their suburban houses. They would need to sell three of them to afford to buy the house they "fled" from as young parents. Told that house in the city to buy that house in the burbs and the city house they sold has quadrupled in value sine they left and the house they bought in the burbs has fallen in value.

serves them right I say.

[MineralMan]

17. Addendum: I told the Hmong guy about another store where

he wouldn't encounter the problem in the future. They don't have as big a selection, but they're good folks.

[liberalhistorian]

18. This is how too many native americans are treated in

South Dakota, especially in Rapid City. Followed around in every store, not assisted, ignored, or treated as garbage, even asked where their liquor bottle is. And if, like me, you're white and complain about it, you're treated as a "traitor", so to speak. It's so ingrained here that it's practically spoon-fed. I couldn't believe the blatant openness of it when I first moved here from OH. Oh, I expected that there'd be racial issues as I was no stranger to the state's 19th-century attitudes, but the sheer cruel frankness of it was a real shocker. And most whites don't even see it or they blame the native americans entirely.

[MineralMan]

20. There's a lot of prejudice against native Americans here in

the Twin Cities, too.

[dflprincess]

26. I think the prejudice against native Americans has gotten worse

with the success of Mystic Lake (at least in "the Cities" - "up noth" it was always bad). The Indians are back to having something the larger society wants and that brings out the worst in a lot of people.

[liberalhistorian]

38. Oh, I don't doubt that for one moment!

I wish it weren't true, but it most assuredly is. Remember, AIM started in the Twin Cities; members began "shadowing" police to ensure fair treatment of native americans, as they were tired of the harassment and profiling. And I'm afraid that not much has really changed in forty years, either, although it's gotten a little better.

What truly frosts my cookies is that people assume that, since I'm white, I automatically share their bullshit ignorant attitudes and they first get shocked, then ashamed, then offended when I call them on their racist bullshit. They don't understand why hubby adn I work with "those people" and why we don't just "see the truth", like they do!!! Umm, yeah, we see the truth. That you're ignorant, bigoted assholes!

[Love Bug]

61. I agree. I never heard a bad word in my life about NAs unil I moved here.

I was shocked and speechless the first time I heard the term "dirty Indian." WTF.

As much as I like living here, I'm not blind to our faults.

[gimama]

45. Do You have any news re: Clear Creek res?

Am interested in the winter weather crisis, & the electric co. disconnecting service? Would appreciate any non-media,1st hand reports.
Several outrageous doc/vids on youtube, and volunteer opps are at www.can-do.org
thank You.

[liberalhistorian]

53. Do you mean the Cheyenne River Reservation?

Last hubby and I heard from friends and former co-workers living there (hubby lived there for a very long time, and I for the first year we were together), electricity and water was back on for the majority of residents, except for the really remote areas. Those should be either back on by now or shortly.

[gimama]

55. ooops, I meant Crow Creek, SD

apologies, if there is a reservation, there are needs, & I mixed 'em up.
No, this is Crow Creek.. besides the rampant poverty & lack of ALL services, the utility co. is disconnecting electricity, & the People are freezing to death, some are on medical devices, & electric service is cut..
One of the latest outrages is uncle sam/irs selling off Indian land there.
I am most worried, tho', about latest winter storms, how the People are coping.

here are some vids, but I'm having trouble downloading them, tonight..I HOPE(!) they work for You.
And even tho' some are nearly a year old, the situation has NOT improved..from what I've been told, the only change is that now the elec.co. cuts the power from their office, miles away..so with recent bad weather, I'm just worried, & would love some current news.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osfd_TEVOE 02-21-09 Crow Creek Indian Res.Left in the Cold
(by docmaster1)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNIsgarKXAO 02-22-09 Human Rights abuses

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYh7RIOGTJI 03-09 Enough!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XoS9nkEJIOk 12-16-09 Going to DC

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChS33Mojbgw 10-12-09 Vets' Lodge

Any recent info most appreciated!

[liberalhistorian]

57. That is very near the reservation we're living on now.

As far as I know, the tribal chairman is still holding vigil in a tent on the land, which he's vowed to do until they get it back. The transfer of the land itself to the buyer has been suspended by the federal judge hearing the case until the tribe's appeal is heard, which I believe will be sometime in March. It is beyond infuriating and frustrating. And it is especially infuriating that many of my fellow whites in this state not only don't care but think that they "deserve" it.

[Love Bug]

62. That is horrible! Where is their telethon?

Not to take anything away from tragedies elsewhere, like in Haiti, but where is the telethon for our fellow citizens? Did I miss it?

[gimama]

83. thanks for Your concern.. & I agree

with YOUR post.
Please help me in trying to get the word out on this atrocity.
I've tried/will keep trying, to get msm involved.. Nuthin'! so far.
If You find any current info, pls. let me know..
Also, ck out the www.can-do.org site
..these Volunteers have worked hard & smart, there.

[Name removed]

63. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Lorien]

64. It's that way in Saginaw MI too. My cousin grew up on a rez near there

and she often was called the "N" word by white residents. :grr:

[liberalhistorian]

80. Reservation border towns, which are usually predominantly

white, are often the worst in regards to racism and discrimination. And towns on reservations that are mostly white are often pretty bad, too. Not always, but quite often. The police in border towns can be especially bad with NA profiling and no amount of attention to it seems to make much difference. The attitude is that the profiling and the racism and the discrimination is all the NA's fault and that they're a bunch of "whiners" who have everything handed to them by the government (NOT true and, even if it were, it would simply be payment on a debt owed by the government that can never really be repaid) and who waste it on alcohol (again, NOT true).

It's disheartening and I'm not really sure it'll ever fully change.

[trotsky]

22. Drop the name, MM!

You know I'm here in Minnesota too; I'd rather not spend my money at a store like this. Just hoping I haven't been all this time! PM me if you wish.

[MineralMan]

24. PM sent.

[LNM]

60. Same here MM

I spend money on fishing gear every year.

[femrap]

25. Did you tell your

new friend to go to another sporting goods store?

I would have said something to the manager of the store....loudly.

[MineralMan]

28. I did both. But, he was there and wanted to buy stuff, so

I didn't want to send him somewhere else at the time. I spoke to the store owner after he left, and explained what had happened and why I'd be shopping elsewhere from then on. I was a regular customer. The owner seemed to not understand the problem.

[femrap]

31. I'm glad you spoke up....

And I hope your new friend enjoys himself.

The longer I live, the more I love animals and dislike humans. Maybe every generation says that.

[MicaelS]

27. The man came out way ahead with your help, Thank you.

Not simply because of the racial aspect, but the fact that someone who knew what they were talking about, and was enthusiastic about the hobby / sport. Even if the salespeople in the store had waited on him, they might have simply sold him the most expensive load of crap in the store just to ring up a big ticket and get him out of the store. I've seen this a number of times. Many salespeople in the computer field are flat out liars who will tell a vulnerable customer they need some expensive POS or service, when they might actually need nothing of the kind. A certain Big Box chain store is especially bad at this. A number of times, I've overheard a salesperson tell the customer they need X or Y or $$$. I wait until the salesperson walks away, then talk to the person and try to help them out if I can.

Thank you for your kindness, hopefully you have made a lifelong friend.

[MineralMan]

29. Well, I sure wasn't selling him the overpriced stuff he didn't need.

I don't use any of that stuff, and I outfish almost everyone I know. I've never seen the guy again, though. I'm sure he told the story to others, though, so maybe I healed some wounds. That'd be good.

[northofdenali]

44. You'll have to come up for a fishing visit.

I have some fabulous grayling/Arctic char fishing spots!

[county worker]

40. I worked with some Hmong people in Vietnam during the war. They had to leave their mountains or be

killed for supporting us. Too bad we can't return the favor.

[AspenRose]

42. From someone who has been ignored on numerous occasions

Thank you. :-)

[never cry wolf]

46. Soooo??? Walleye, pike or muskie?

Jigging, casting or trolling? Best times of my life were spent fishing on Lake of the Woods, just north of Minnesota...

[Canuckistanian]

47. Bigotry is bad for business

They'll learn, eventually.

[progressoid]

48. Fishing in Minnesota? No Way!

;) :hi:

[gimama]

49. Thank YOU,MM, for sharing..

with that Neighbor, & with DU.
YES! There will CONTINUE to be a ripple-effect of HEALING, from Your actions.
& while it seems 'natural' for YOU to do things like that, You are awesome & Healing the World.
Thank YOU. & may You catch so many Fish, You have to give some away..
:hi:

ps.
DUers are such sweet Hearts..
I enJoyed all these responses to Your story!

[Artie Bucco]

51. Good on you...

Even though the mention of the Hmong reminded me of this article I read a few weeks ago.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article6969356.ece

[Iggo]

52. It's weird when you see it live, so to speak.

Just this morning on the bus I saw about a dozen people standing in the aisle with one open seat...yep, next to a black guy. I looked at him with a look on my face that was like, "Really?" And dude looked back at me with kind of an exasperated look as if to say it wasn't the first time. Like I said. Weird.

I'm glad to read your doubly happy tale, though. Once-happy as in you helped out a fellow human being. And twice-happy in that you were educated about the store that you (now formerly) shopped at. Win-win.

[1]

54. you encouraged a man to buy $500 of fishing shit? a man that wanted to START fishing? are you nuts?

i get your compassionate story about the non-white man and all. yeah, yeah...

but you don't buy $500 worth of anything if you are starting out on something. a better story would be you helping this dude buy the MINIMUM required to fish for a bit. to see if he likes it and will continue with the sport. quality things to improve the experience and get the job done for the LEAST amount of money. things he can build on in the future as his enjoyment and experience grows.

and that is not anywhere near $500. i could get him out of that store for under $100. hell, probably $50. easy.

C-

go back and rewrite this. don't concentrate so much on the benefit to the store, concentrate on the benefit to the man and his fishing experience...

[Lorien]

65. You really need to stop with this kind of flamebait

No more attempts at threadjacking please. Let's stay on topic.

[1]

68. i'm sorry you feel that way. i was totally on topic. i guess $500 means more to me than you...

in your rush to applaud op over this wonderful humanitarian act, you don't get the point of my post?

that $500 seems excessive in this case?

you don't get that?

have you ever been fishing? it is the least expensive of all sporting activities.

my bad for pointing that out. your bad for being so superior.

sheesh...

[Forkboy]

84. I'd say +1, but that would just encourage him.

But yes, it's what this poster seems to do best.

[alphafemale]

69. Why are you assuming the man didn't get exactly what he wanted?

Or worse that it was money that he couldn't afford to spend?

Just because he's Hmong he's poor and stupid?

I'm not sure why you are attacking the OP.

[1]

71. i didn't attack anyone, friend... i questioned a $500 purchase of fishing gear...

you, obviously, are not a fisherperson.

$500 is a big deal, and a HUGE purchase for someone starting out in fishing. out-fucking-rageous. yes, that bad.

if you don't know about the subject? why do you attack the me?

hummm?

[alphafemale]

72. "are you nuts" isn't an attack?

OK

I'm just not understanding how you decided that someone was victimized because they chose to spend money on a hobby.

Spending money frivolously can be a tremendous joy.

Assuming that minorities are always victims and not capable of making their own decisions is one of the most insidious and patronizing forms of racism that exists.

[1]

73. i didn't assume anything. you did. don't hold me responsible for your ideas about the subject...

assume away, friend.

just don't project your crap on me...

[alphafemale]

74. enjoy your reality. nt

[1]

75. ummm... i guess then, be so superior about things you know nothing about. nt.

[truedelphi]

56. Thanks for this story. n/t

[SoxFan]

58. Well done, MM

:toast: :yourock:

[DesertFlower]

59. we've become friendly with the owners

of our chinese restaurant. one is from laos, the other from burma. i don't know if they're Hmong. anyway the one from laos told me that when she goes to "high end" boutiques, they ignore her. she said they act like she doesn't belong there.

[Swamp Rat]

66. kick - wish I could rec

:kick:

[TwentyFive]

67. Wow...you are a lucky man to make such a friend. And he is lucky to have your friendship too.

I can tell that you are a caring and observant man.

Not to 'prejudge' people, but I discovered that immigrants often make more interesting (and loyal) friends than people who were born here. I have not had a chance to travel to other countries, so I get to learn about other people's experiences in their native country. It's also fascinating to get their take on the US. There is also something about the character of a person who pulls up stakes and moves to another country.

[Terra Alta]

70. Thanks for your story, and your generosity

towards this man.

I see the same attitude all the time here towards Hispanic people, and it disgusts me. I work with a young and very nice Mexican girl who speaks somewhat broken English... many of my co-workers ignore her or only talk to her when they have to... I try to talk to her on a regular basis and have really gotten to know her. People are people, I can't stand racists who judge a person by their nationality, it makes me sick.

[Jax]

76. REAL LIFE

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x7629208

[Vidar]

78. Well done.

[cherokeeprogressive]

79. I'm a Native American who passes for white. I've experienced the same thing

HUNDREDS of times in every department stores from Penney's to Sears to KMart to TG&Y... Sales Associates literally HIDING when they think someone might need a question asked.