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Video: Customers Shout N-Word At Xi'an Famous Foods' Employees
By
Jake Offenhartz
Published May 11, 2017
Modified May 11, 2017
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By
Jake Offenhartz
Published May 11, 2017
Modified May 11, 2017
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A video shared Thursday by Xi'an Famous Foods CEO Jason Wang documents two men shouting racist insults at employees of the midtown Manhattan location, in an exchange that culminates with one of the customers shouting "F-ck you, n-gger." The altercation occurred on Sunday at the restaurant's 54th Street location, according to Wang's post.
Ellon, the employee in the video who asked only to be identified by his first name, tells Gothamist that the unidentified customers were set off after he informed them that the restaurant doesn't accept American Express. "They basically told me that I was a representative of my race and that I make everyone look lazy," Ellon said. After the manager, who was also black, told the men that they shouldn't bring race into, they "blew it totally out of proportion" and "started screaming the n-word as they walked toward the door," Ellon said.
"There's no reason to mention my blackness; it's obvious if you look at me, it's not like a burden," Ellon added. He described the men as tall and muscular, and said that one was white and one was Asian.
In the video, which was shared to the store's Facebook page Thursday morning, the two customers can be heard taunting the employees, with one shouting: "Being lazy is part of your community," and "black is not a racial slur sweetheart," before yelling the n-word as they stormed out.
In the Facebook post, Wang noted that he "personally would not have taken this as calmly as my staff did, and while there's no 'Yelp' for me to give 1-stars to these two, I want to at least try to get some sense of justice by spreading awareness by highlighting how close racism still hits home." He added that the two culprits had not yet been identified, but would be permanently banned from all Xi'an Famous Foods.
Ellon told Gothamist that he spoke with Wang on the phone earlier in the week, but was trying to "move past it."
"It’s New York, you don’t think it’s going to happen, and then it actually happens," Ellon said. "I mean do whatever you want, but saying things like that really hurt, you know?"
Update: The CEO of Xi'an Famous Foods provided Gothamist with the following statement:
I am a minority and have been subject to racist attacks growing up, but there's no way for me to fathom the African-American experience, I can only try to relate to how painful these attacks are. Our company has no tolerance for this type of behavior. It was very shocking and painful for me to review this video and to imagine the what my employees felt at this time. I cried a few times while compiling this video at midnight, which while painful to watch, I felt the need to show people that these racist behaviors are not a thing of the past, and we must stay ever so vigilant to not fall back on dark times in these recent days. Regardless of what the grievances people have, they should have shown more respect for their fellow men and women and be aware of the shameful history of the n-word. These two are not welcome in any of my establishments, as our stores are places of tolerance, for all of my valued employees as well as my valued guests.
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Jason Wang
Xi'an Famous Foods
Jake Offenhartz
Jake Offenhartz is a former Gothamist reporter.
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