# "Black people must leave...." A Walmart incident. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 18, 2010, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887 "2010-03-18T14:42:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2010, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/61 "2010-03-19T03:31:30Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > I once fantasized about getting on the hospital P.A. on April 1st and announcing: "Dr. Fine, Dr. Howard and Dr. Fine! Report to Neurosurgery _on the double!!"_ I think you need to drop a Fine and pick up a Howard. ---
**Author:** ![dragoncat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/6a8cbe/32.png) [@dragoncat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dragoncat)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2010, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/62 "2010-03-19T08:01:43Z")
Wait, I’m confused. At the beginning of the thread I was agreeing that it probably wasn’t a Walmart employee who made the announcement and that the issue might have been slanted the wrong way. But I don’t see why this means African Americans who wish to shop there (for whatever reason) are overreacting when they are extremely bothered by the incident. Look. I’m Jewish, and if I were in a country with a history of anti-Semitic violence (including fairly recent), and I were in a store and heard “all Jewish people must leave the store immediately,” I certainly would not feel comfortable going back there. That’s just me. No, it’s not a huuuuge thing but it would definitely affect my shopping habits. ---
**Author:** ![kidneyfailure](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9f8e36/32.png) [@kidneyfailure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kidneyfailure)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2010, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/63 "2010-03-19T08:19:22Z")
> [@The\_Facts](#): > > The victim’s pain and suffering is the same, whether you meant it or not. Pain and suffering from what? Some jackass making a stupid comment on the PA? Anyone who would even think of making a big stink out of something like that when it obviously was not officially sanctioned by the management is just looking for a payout and/or his/her name in the paper. It is as transparent as can be. ---
**Author:** ![halfliquid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e57/32.png) [@halfliquid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/halfliquid)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2010, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/64 "2010-03-20T17:02:25Z")
I’m glad it was a teenager and not an employee. At least the teen can feign ignorance over the comment. ---
**Author:** ![Telcontar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3bc359/32.png) [@Telcontar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telcontar)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2010, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/65 "2010-03-20T17:55:48Z")
> [@dragoncat](#): > > Wait, I’m confused. At the beginning of the thread I was agreeing that it probably wasn’t a Walmart employee who made the announcement and that the issue might have been slanted the wrong way. But I don’t see why this means African Americans who wish to shop there (for whatever reason) are overreacting when they are extremely bothered by the incident. Look. I’m Jewish, and if I were in a country with a history of anti-Semitic violence (including fairly recent), and I were in a store and heard “all Jewish people must leave the store immediately,” I certainly would not feel comfortable going back there. That’s just me. No, it’s not a huuuuge thing but it would definitely affect my shopping habits. And, frankly, I’d call you silly for that too. The perp has been arrested. They were a 16 year old boy [http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/03/20/business/AP-US-Wal-Mart-Racial-Comment.html?\_r=1&ref=nyregion](http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/03/20/business/AP-US-Wal-Mart-Racial-Comment.html?_r=1&ref=nyregion) Hardly Walmart’s fault that stupid/immature/racist (take your pick) teenagers shop there. The manager came on quickly afterwords to apologize/reassure and, judging by the arrest, they presumably made their cc tv footage readily available to the police. What more could they do? ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2010, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/66 "2010-03-20T21:25:13Z")
Last night while at Walmart this happened. One clerk was saying the PA is broken. Nothing happens. The other clerk says that’s because a customer used the PA in another store. They broke our PA ? How did they break our PA in another store? No you have to punch in a code. We have to punch in a code. That’s stupid! No someone _whisper whisper whisper_. I was laughing to myself. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2010, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/67 "2010-03-20T21:42:21Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > I’m not sure. When the customer promptly gets the crap beaten out of him/her, is Wal-Mart liable for not having security protect them? > > I once fantasized about getting on the hospital P.A. on April 1st and announcing: > > "Dr. Fine, Dr. Howard and Dr. Fine! Report to Neurosurgery _on the double!!"_ > > “Oh, wiseguy! Woob-woob-woob-woob-woob-woob-woob-woob!!!” > > Someone would take it seriously, though. I don’t get it. ---
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2010, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/68 "2010-03-20T22:01:29Z")
What bothers me most about this story is it made national news. It was an immature stupid incident. It is not clear who made the announcement and for what reason. Anyone could easily walk into just about any big box store and do the same thing. No one was horrible inconvenienced. What news value did reporting this have? ---
**Author:** ![Rodgers01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2010, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/69 "2010-03-20T23:10:23Z")
According to the NY Times article, the boy could face _up to a year in juvenile detention_ if convicted of the “bias and intimidation and harassment” he’s been charged with. Anyone else find _that_ disturbing? It was a prank, and a particularly hurtful and juvenile one, and the kid is probably a punk. But still - a prank. How about, say, ban him from Wal-Mart and make him do volunteer work mowing lawns and cleaning floors at the local NAACP? > [@The\_Facts](#): > > I suspect that had someone broadcast anti-white or anti-christian ideas, this would be a federal case. Beck and O’Reilly would be all over it. Trash the black folks… hell that’s just the way it is, don’t get all upset. Well this incident has made the front page of the New York Times online - if that’s not nearly a “federal case”, I’m not sure what is. ---
**Author:** ![TheScogg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a5b964/32.png) [@TheScogg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheScogg)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2010, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/70 "2010-03-20T23:33:19Z")
All I can say is, if this incident were enough to be so outraged as to never return to Wal-Mart, then racial relations sure have improved immensely in the last 40 years. Having a random teenager ask you to leave a store over a loudspeaker sure beats the hell out of having a fire hose turned on you and your family. It is too bad that so many people insist on playing the victim, pretending they have to deal with even a tenth of the hardships their great grandparents had to deal with. That, in itself, is more insulting than anything you could say over a department store PA system. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2010, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/71 "2010-03-21T02:29:45Z")
> [@Rodgers01](#): > > According to the NY Times article, the boy could face _up to a year in juvenile detention_ if convicted of the “bias and intimidation and harassment” he’s been charged with. Anyone else find _that_ disturbing? Can you imagine if instead of “black people” he said “niggers”? They’d have to nuke him from orbit, it’s the only way to be sure. ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2010, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/72 "2010-03-21T05:16:17Z")
> [@TheScogg](#): > > All I can say is, if this incident were enough to be so outraged as to never return to Wal-Mart, then racial relations sure have improved immensely in the last 40 years. Having a random teenager ask you to leave a store over a loudspeaker sure beats the hell out of having a fire hose turned on you and your family. > > It is too bad that so many people insist on playing the victim, pretending they have to deal with even a tenth of the hardships their great grandparents had to deal with. That, in itself, is more insulting than anything you could say over a department store PA system. Does that mean we have to forget, though? Should we shrug off slurs and discrimination and risk having society creep back to the way it once was? ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2010, 9:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/73 "2010-03-21T09:55:38Z")
> [@elmwood](#): > > New Zealanders should find this highly offensive! I recommend they boycott all Wal-Mart stores in their country as a protest. You are aware there are no Wal-Marts in NZ, right? 😉 > [@boytyperanma](#): > > What bothers me most about this story is it made national news. It was an immature stupid incident. It is not clear who made the announcement and for what reason. Anyone could easily walk into just about any big box store and do the same thing. No one was horrible inconvenienced. > > What news value did reporting this have? I was wondering that too. To me, this isn’t even a “Slow News Day” story. There’s nothing even remotely newsworthy about it and it shouldn’t be getting reported at all. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2010, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/74 "2010-03-21T12:13:47Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > I was wondering that too. To me, this isn’t even a “Slow News Day” story. There’s nothing even remotely newsworthy about it and it shouldn’t be getting reported at all. It’s not any bigger deal than other stuff we blow off everyday, with a comment of idiot and we move on with life. You can depend on a clerk having been verbally abused much worse by a customer that day at a checkout or the service desk. ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2010, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/75 "2010-03-21T15:06:15Z")
> [@TheScogg](#): > > All I can say is, if this incident were enough to be so outraged as to never return to Wal-Mart, then racial relations sure have improved immensely in the last 40 years. Having a random teenager ask you to leave a store over a loudspeaker sure beats the hell out of having a fire hose turned on you and your family. > > It is too bad that so many people insist on playing the victim, pretending they have to deal with even a tenth of the hardships their great grandparents had to deal with. That, in itself, is more insulting than anything you could say over a department store PA system. Oh boy. You’re in for it now. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2010, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/76 "2010-03-21T18:32:24Z")
> [@TheScogg](#): > > All I can say is, if this incident were enough to be so outraged as to never return to Wal-Mart, then racial relations sure have improved immensely in the last 40 years. Having a random teenager ask you to leave a store over a loudspeaker sure beats the hell out of having a fire hose turned on you and your family. > > It is too bad that so many people insist on playing the victim, pretending they have to deal with even a tenth of the hardships their great grandparents had to deal with. That, in itself, is more insulting than anything you could say over a department store PA system. So as long as things can be worse, no one should be upset? Okay then. Just so we’re clear, I share **Gyrate** ’s incredulity that this was part of Wal_Mart’s (can’t forget the star in the middle!) Master Evil Plan™ to be nasty to black people then try to cover it up, and go, “lol wut – we didn’t do anything.” Some d-bag got access to the PA and said something stupid, Wal_Mart apologized, the end. If, however, this were some Wal_Mart-sanctioned malfeasance, I’d say people would be right to be angry enough to not return to any of their stores, even though Wal_Mart officially asking black people to leave is a far lighter offense than, say, siccing dogs on them. ---
**Author:** ![you\_with\_the\_face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ecccb3/32.png) [@you\_with\_the\_face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/you_with_the_face)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2010, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/77 "2010-03-21T18:47:54Z")
Am I the only who doesn’t understand the outrage over either ends of the spectrum here? Dumb kid said something stupid over the PA. Okay, these things happen. Time for the world to turn. Dumb person says something stupid when asked about the incident. Okay, these things happen. Time for the world to turn. I think the dumbassity from both ends have sufficiently canceled each other out, and there’s nothing there to see at all. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2010, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/78 "2010-03-21T19:06:57Z")
> [@Uncommon\_Sense](#): > > I don’t know why people get all bent out of shape. It was obviously a stupid prank, probably by a former or current and disgruntled employee. > > … > > Couple of thoughts though, directed at the offended; > > IT WAS A PRANK, GET OVER IT!! > [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](#): > > I saw that story on Fark and two of the customers said they were boycotting Wal-mart now. That made me think: “Are they stupid?” It’s not like Wal-mart endorsed the prank. At worst, they are only negligent in leaving a desk unattended where some jackass could get to the phone and hit the PA system. > [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > I think some people are seeing potential dollar signs (lawsuit) so are making a fuss over nothing. > [@hajario](#): > > This was obviously a prank by a non-employee. … All of the anger directed at Wallmart over this is stupid beyond belief. > [@you\_with\_the\_face](#): > > Am I the only who doesn’t understand the outrage over either ends of the spectrum here? Clearly. ---
**Author:** ![you\_with\_the\_face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ecccb3/32.png) [@you\_with\_the\_face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/you_with_the_face)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2010, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/79 "2010-03-21T19:22:57Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > Clearly. I didn’t know the people you quoted constitutes everyone, but thanks for the run down. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2010, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887/80 "2010-03-21T19:27:17Z")
Well after going through less than one third of the first page, I concluded that you are, indeed, the only one who fails to understand the outrage. At your service, Mol [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-people-must-leave-a-walmart-incident/532887.md?page=5)