N.J. Eatery Writes 'Jew Couple' on Check

[AuroEdge]

The bill was a shocker, and not because of the amount. After eating at a Jersey shore restaurant, Elliott Stein and his girlfriend were handed a bill that said "Jew Couple" near the bottom, as a table identifier used by the waitstaff. The slur also turned up on Stein's credit card statement weeks later.

"My grandfather went through all that in old-school Europe," Stein, a New Yorker and a regular at the restaurant, told the New York Post. "But that happened more than 50 years ago. You don't expect it to happen in 2005."

The New Jersey Attorney General's Office said Wednesday it is investigating the July incident at Parkhill's Waterfront Grill through its Division on Civil Rights.

Stein, 23, could not be reached for comment Wednesday. He did not return two telephone messages left at his office.

The server, identified on the check only as Karina, is no longer working at the restaurant, general manager Malia Wells said Wednesday. Wells wouldn't say if it was because of the incident.

"We don't run our establishment like that," Wells said. "It was definitely poor judgment on her part."

Stephen Reid, a spokesman for the restaurant, said it had been the waitstaff's practice to use descriptions of diners to identify them on checks, instead of using the number of their table, as many establishments do.

He said racial slurs were never used to describe diners.

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[Wagh]

didn't know calling a jewish person a jew was a slur.

[jaredfogle]

Ehh... That's a bit of a stretch.

Not really racism, when you're dealing with tons of faces a day, its easier to remember with things like, jew couple, big black dude, pimply teen, flamboyant gay.

[Tyne]

I like her name, I bet she was hot just because of her name and she's a waitress.

[Sicario]

That eatery sucks why would they even allow jews in the establishment? Save for the oven, they've no reason to be anywhere near Christian Israelites while they eat.

[-Azathoth-]

Incredible overreaction? I think so. The simple fact that the word "jew" was coined as a slur speaks volumes.

[Strapping Scherzo]

Yeah, her writing Jew on the check is like writing African Amercian, Pole, Dane, Mexican, etc.. Technically harmless. But to single them out as the "Jew Couple" instead of using their table number is definitely asking for trouble.

[Gav-X]

Wagh: jew is like saying "nigger" and "jewish" is like saying "african american", there is a difference between both words.

jaredfogle: it is a bit of a stretch and firing her was a bit too much, but even though you're right and given the amount of people that a waiter must see every day, remembering specific features is easier, that's what one's mind is for. Thoughts are private, written words are not. Besides, Strapping Scherzo is right, she singled them out (and how did she know they were jewish? they probably looked stereotypical, but she can't have known for sure...) and that is plain wrong.

-Azathoth-: yeah, it was an overreaction and some kind of sensitivity class would have sufficed. As for the rest of your post, I answer the same thing I answered to Wagh.


Sicario: you will be reported to the mods.

[Wagh]

Wagh: jew is like saying "racism is bad, mmmkay" and "jewish" is like saying "african american", there is a difference between both words.

Never had a jewish person tell me that. Ever. But whatever.

[|darc|]

Wagh: jew is like saying "nigger".

Usage Note: It is widely recognized that the attributive use of the noun Jew, in phrases such as Jew lawyer or Jew ethics, is both vulgar and highly offensive. In such contexts Jewish is the only acceptable possibility. Some people, however, have become so wary of this construction that they have extended the stigma to any use of Jew as a noun, a practice that carries risks of its own. In a sentence such as There are now several Jews on the council, which is unobjectionable, the substitution of a circumlocution like Jewish people or persons of Jewish background may in itself cause offense for seeming to imply that Jew has a negative connotation when used as a noun.

[Gav-X]

obviously, I didn't write "racism is bad, mmmkay", but nigg@r.

Wagh: if you have jewish acquaintances, ask around. Some will tell you it is, some will tell you it isn't. Besides, it all comes down to personal opinion, and in case like this, only one person has to feel offended for it to matter. These persons felt offended and that's that.

[read |darc|'s edit]Well, I'd rather use There are now several jewish persons on the council in the example you provided. Again, it's just a matter of adjusting oneself to whatever offends someone else.

[Veggita2099]

If I got a check and it had the "Honkey couple" writen on it Id probably just laugh.

[Sicario]

Maybe they got labeled that way cuz they were cheap?

[|darc|]

If I got a check and it had the "Honkey couple" writen on it Id probably just laugh.

Your race was never gassed, killed, burned, and experimented on.

[Gav-X]

If I got a check and it had the "Honkey couple" writen on it Id probably just laugh.

Your race was never gassed, killed, burned, and experimented on.

I assume your intentions when posting that were good, but that comment does more harm than good. You see, jewish people didn't get the worst deal on WW2, that was actually the russians (27 millions counting soldiers and civilians). Even if we had had the most casualties, that shouldn't be used as a freepass pity card. The reason to be offended by racial slurs is because they portray an unfair, derogatory picture of a group of people.



Sicario, you will be reported to the mods again. Cut it out, internet anonimacy is not a reason to act like a coward jerk. You are not impressing anyone.

[bizzle]

African American, please.

[|darc|]

If I got a check and it had the "Honkey couple" writen on it Id probably just laugh.

Your race was never gassed, killed, burned, and experimented on.

I assume your intentions when posting that were good, but that comment does more harm than good. You see, jewish people didn't get the worst deal on WW2, that was actually the russians (27 millions counting soldiers and civilians). Even if we had had the most casualties, that shouldn't be used as a freepass pity card. The reason to be offended by racial slurs is because they portray an unfair, derogatory picture of a group of people.

That's irrelevant. The Jews were the ones discriminated against, herded together, and destroyed. The reason was simply because of ignorant hatred.

The Russians were shot because they were the enemy.

I'm not saying the Nazis loved Russians at any rate, but it was certainly the Jews that their actions were geared against. It's highly unlikely that a Neonazi would go after Russians, but highly likely that they would go after a Jew. A Jew would be the one to be afraid.

[FETUS]

What if instead of just a table number they used "Jew couple" so everyone in the kitchen would be sure everything in there meal was cosher?

[Stormwatch]

Could be. Then again, not all jews actually care about kosher.

[Gav-X]

That's irrelevant. The Jews were the ones discriminated against, herded together, and destroyed. The reason was simply because of ignorant hatred.

The Russians were shot because they were the enemy.

I'm not saying the Nazis loved Russians at any rate, but it was certainly the Jews that their actions were geared against. It's highly unlikely that a Neonazi would go after Russians, but highly likely that they would go after a Jew. A Jew would be the one to be afraid.

I never thought about it that way, you make a very good point.