>

I'll bet the kids loved the food.
“Instead of the Philly cheesesteak, broccoli and fresh fruit that appeared on the school's lunch calendar, Aramark, the food service company that provides meals to the district, served chicken and waffles with watermelon.” >

The fact that this same company has done this before is concerning >

They fired people the last time it happened but clearly that was just the expendable staff. The ones responsible are still working. They should end the contract with them instead of waiting for this to die down and do it again in 5 years. >

Agreed. Also their food is garbage. It would be really neat if schools could hire local people to make food in house, instead of buying this overproduced stuff. It would also in highschools be a good work study period (or whatever they call it when seniors with space in their schedules can either shadow and help a teacher/admin or get a job) but I understand logistics/money etc makes this difficult, especially in poorer or more crowded school districts >

That would require changes to how federal funding happens for schools but as a former teacher? A lot of people working in the schools want that change too. It's also why ending the contract isn't likely to happen. This is just sad and part of the broken system. >

I feel like if we all collectively agreed to start several things from scratch it would be beneficial. The way we do government spending? Full overhaul. The way we treat healthcare and schooling? Start over, make a new system that focuses on maximum benefits and minimum harm. Pipe dreams, but maybe one small thing at a time can change >

This will require a different government where I live but the majority of people want that. The problem is the system doesn't force the government to actually represent the will of the people. Which is the dumbest thing when the propaganda about how awesome the place is relies on that as a sales tactic. The other option for me would be to live where it's illegal for me to be myself and with a dictatorship so I will happily stay here I just will also call the bullshit out to try and make enough incentive for change to happen. We will get to the needed change it just will take more time. >

Funny that Aramark was our food service provider in prison. I hope the kids don't get the same food we did 🤢 >

They don't!
They get worse :) >

I can't believe that's possible. Or let's say I CHOOSE to believe that's not possible. But then they say anything's possible. 🤷 >

My high school had a “soul food” day on the day of our black history month celebration. No stereotypical watermelon or cool-aid though, just more authentic soul food, including fried chicken. Was one of the tastiest meals for sure. Our head cafeteria guy also wore a fake mustache and sombrero when they served Mexican for cinco de mayo. >

Well, that's all fun. This is fried chicken, waffles, and watermelon. 
We had soul food day in NC in the 00s. It was fried chicken, black eyed peas, mustard greens, and something else. We all looked forward to it. >

I know what I'm cooking for dinner tomorrow, I'll even dig out the muffin tray for some cornbread. >

Whelp I can't believe I I left off cornbread, but there really was something else and it's keeping me up tonight so far. >

Probably not chitlins, I doubt the school would be brave enough to serve those. Maybe some kind of dessert, sweet potato pie maybe? >

Peach pie was also considered legit by the soul food place in my previous town. >

And banana pudding. >

Wait, what?? My mom is from Mississippi and my dad is from Louisiana. They moved north when I was a baby so I grew up a yank. It's a weird feeling learning something I thought was common is actually very regional. On the other side of that same feeling I like my grits with fig preserves like my grandmom from Louisiana made for me. Didn't learn about grits with salt and butter until I moved to a rough neighborhood in Philly. >

Aramark: What? I thought you people liked this stuff. >

But this isn't the first time Aramark found itself in hot water. Back in 2018, another racially insensitive meal was served at New York University during Black History Month. It included barbecued ribs, collard greens, cornbread, Kool-Aid and watermelon-flavored water. When called out, the company apologized and workers were fired.
"I thought they learned from their last mistake, but I guess not," Honore said. >


Kool-Aid and watermelon-flavored wate

Let's be honest this was the problem. Up until then I was thinking 'yeah that is a pretty normal thing I've gotten from 'soul food' restaurants >

I'm 45 years old and I never knew Kool-aid was a trope.  The only people I ever knew that drank Kool-aid were white people... mostly me when I was a kid. >

I had the same reaction when i first heard loving watermelon is a racist trope. I mean, who doesn’t love watermelon??? How can this be a stereotype about Black people when everyone eats watermelon? On a hot day, eating cold watermelon is such a treat. Such an asshole way to ruin the enjoyment of one of nature’s best creations for Black people who can’t just eat something without it being turned into racial slurs. >


I had the same reaction when i first heard loving watermelon is a racist trope

I did too, because watermelon is probably my favorite fruit, but that's a well known racist trope... I've known about it for at least three decades.
Fried chicken + watermelon is clearly (to me) something you should not serve to celebrate Black history.  It's not as bad as celebrating it with a noose on the tree outside but it's in the same genre of things. >

Agreed that it is a racist trope. I’m not denying it. Just saying that I don’t understand why/how it is a racist trope when everyone loves watermelon. Racism is so awful and even though this is trivial in comparison to nooses or violence, it’s evidence of how it turns what ought to be innocent human actions (like eating watermelon) into pain. I wish we could all just eat watermelon without the layers of nastiness. >


Just saying that I don’t understand why/how it is a racist trope when everyone loves watermelon

Yeah it doesn't make any sense at all.
For that matter neither does chicken.
For that matter neither does racism. >

As I learned last year MLKs favorite meal is: fried chicken, collared greens, and sweet potatoes >


collared greens

Collard greens >

Colored greens
Dont cancel me pls >

They aren’t called collard people >

People of collard >

Collard TV? >

No, cholera tree. >

This is literally not the first time this company has done something like this… >

Served food? >

According to the article, several years ago, in another NY school, during black history month, they served fried chicken, black-eyed peas, collard greens and koolaid, watermelon flavored. >

Chicken and waffles are awesome regardless of skin color. Watermelon was over the line. >

I'm confused. What's wrong  with watermelon? >

Learn something new everyday...I'd never heard of that and I live in the south too >

Yes, but you're 13, right? >

Hah... Just turned 40 unfortunately >

I'm similar age, lived in California my entire life.  Never heard of this stereotype. >

Do you people live under a rock lol? It’s been a trope for like a century and if you’ve seen any cartoon or piece of media with a black person pre-90s it was absolutely prevalent. Pretty sure as like a young child I was aware of the “fried chicken, watermelon, dark face with red lips” stereotypes just from media alone and I’m 30 >

This was something that took me a long time to accept, but people have super reliable blindspots for things that don't affect them. >

I’m white as fuck and my entire family is. Pretty much no minority friends just due to proximity. I’ve always lived in white ass towns and grew up in a small town with a white ass church on every corner. 
These things are incredibly obvious and even discussed in school, so unless you are willingly ignoring racism, you’d hear about it. “I just missed it” seems like bullshit in a country where every second news story is black and minority people being murdered by racists >

Finally a relevant place to tell my story. 
I was a cook at Jobcorps in 2008 during black history month. At our center, it was reduced to black history week. The first day of which had a "black history lunch". The students were segregated and the black students were to have their own lunch time.
Now, the women in charge of the menu was the student supervisor for PM shift, Ms.Francais.
Ms.Francais was in her 60's, african, and regularly came to work in traditional african garb complete with a dope totem-pole-style cane with elephants and shit.
Her menu included:
Fried Chicken
Baked Chicken
Collard Greens
Chitlins
(so far, not so bad right?)
The entire salad bar (2 of them in a line), were used for watermelon, exclusively.
(okay a bit dicey...but then there was the ~~cherry~~ grape on top...)
We had one of those fancy juice machines you usually see at hotels with breakfast, and ours had 6 different flavors from orange and apple, to exotic shit like passionfruit guava. Despite this, Ms.Francais had us mix up 2 sports coolers (bout 10 gallons) of grape coolaid and place them by the juice machine...😑 >

Oh lord. Did they really segregate the kids? >

Absolutely >

99% of all non-Americans are just staring at the screen right now and have some giant question marks in their eyes. >

Exactly, like... "Everybody eats watermelon and waffles... Don't all kids in the US eat those too, black or white or asian or latino or whatever? How can, of all things, eating watermelon - "the" fruit of summer - become a racial thing?" >

After the civil war, newly freed black people started growing and selling their own food.
The watermelon was especially popular because it was relatively easy to cultivate and in high demand.
This made some black people very wealthy and some white folk just were'nt having it so they started the stereotype of the lazy c**n that likes watermelon.
Soon the fruit became associated with that image which led sales to briefly plummet (they were  eventually restored )but the caricature persisted >

Oooh! I didn’t know where the bad image came from! >

My university did this. Except it was on a Feb 29th. >

I’m sorry that people were upset by it, but that first fuck up meal where they served ribs, collards, and cornbread with kool aid sounds pretty fucking awesome. >

What is a racially-sensitive meal that can be served in Black History Month? >

FWIW, the article says that the announced meal was something else, Philly cheesesteak and sides. But instead somehow it got changed to a full checklist of stereotypes. Could be intentional, could be a really dumb series of substitutions. >

Yeah, my school serves chicken and waffles all the time, but what we dont have is fresh fruit so if that showed up eyebrows WOULD be raised! I think the fact it was an unannounced menu change adds more fuel to the fire. >

This school only served chicken and they had to apologize for it. >

So like genuinely curious, why’s the watermelon to far? Like the girl who complained said she wouldn’t have complained if it was just chicken and waffles. I feel like chicken and waffles is just as much of a stereotype as watermelon. >

So like I get that, but isn’t there also a stereotype for fried chicken? They seem kinda similar and equally as bad, but in this case it’s specifically the watermelon that’s the problem. >

Fried chicken and waffles is a super common dish in NYC and its metro area, where this school is. No one would associate it with Blackness tbh. Everybody eats it, even vegan/vegetarian versions exist. >

Everyone also eats watermelon.  Like, all over the world. >

As Dave Chappelle says “If you don’t like watermelon and fried chicken something is wrong with you!  It’s delicious” >

Yeah but he’s also an ass >

Before I read the article I thought, "what'd they serve, fried chicken and watermelon?"
Yes. Yes they did. 🤦 >

So moving forward are they going to serve racially insensitive meals during other months instead? >

Waffles? Like Belgian waffles with chicken?
Non American here. What do you mean by waffles? >

Just serve macaroni and cheese, with a side salad to keep everything kosher. >

I swear I read this story last February! >

Worked for these shit heels in the Refreshments AP team. Upper management is about as air headed as they come. I've had team managers disappear at lunch on day 1 because of poor corporate management. Not surprised. >

Watermelon flavored water. Brought to you by the same company that's been sued for spending $2 on feeding prisoners >

Obligatory "not american"
I admit my knowledge of the USA is memes and pop culture, from what I've gathered African Americans really seem to like that food. Why is it insensitive? Genuine question here. >

These foods are typically things that they were forced to eat as slaves because they were dirt cheap and nobody wanted to eat them. They claimed power over that situation by turning it into a tradition and celebrating it instead. Now all these years later people are serving this stuff to them "because black food for black people on black history month." I think that's enough info to plainly see where people are coming from, and I don't think I have the ability to explain deeper or better than that. If you want to learn more I'm sure there are plenty of resources out there. >

Or we could listen to the people that are genuinely offended by this and not whitewash over their pain.
Talk about writing a paragraph about nothing. It doesn’t cost a thing to fucking listen, but here you are. >

Chicken and waffles with watermelon. Wtf, Aramark? >

I've been a chef for 20 years in 7 countries
Food is not racist unless you're in the States for some reason. >

Context clues must be your greatest enemy. >

Nah right now this whole "gas stove" nonsense is prob my current nemesis >

As a European I would fail so hard in this food minefield. >

All you need to know is everything in America is racist. You’ll be ok /s >

Me joking: "jesus, what did they serve, like chicken and waffles with a side of watermelon or something??" 
Oh. They did do that. >

It could only be more racist if they served grape koolaid. >

Soooo food legitimately part of the culinary cultural heritage of the culture being celebrated is off limits for this one and only culture. Got it. >

You stupid. >

Racism never tasted so good. That meal sounds better than anything I ever had in middle school. Though the special pizzas you had to pay extra for were hold a special place in my stomach >

Wonder what they'll serve for Juneteenth >

If they are in Texas then it's barbecue.. >

Love me some brisket >

id say this Is the height of ridiculousness , but there's always tomorrow >

"Racially insensitive meal" wasn't on my 2023 bingo card. Damn. >

I don't understand what's wrong with acknowledging that black people love chicken and watermelon. >

Who doesn't enjoy amazing chicken and/or watermelon?
Grew up in an Italian family and we sure as shit ate a ton of this too..... Isn't it just... Food?!... >

Can you imagine there being an italian American month and having the school serve pizza and pasta to celebrate it lol yes please! >

A bunch of us would have went wild! Half would complain it isn't as good as Nonna's haha >

Yep itd become a long conversation of how to make it more authentic as everyone enjoys the shabby cafeteria version.. >

betcha next time they stick to menu from the week before. IF you try to appease everyone somebody gonna be offended
was it right what they did? nope
would I continue to attempt to craft ethnic holiday menu's? NOPE
Tomorrow you getting mystery meat "chicken" nuggets, corn and pudding. >

sounds like a great meal to me >

I’m white but I freakin love fried chicken and watermelon. I wish my school would’ve served that instead of the nasty shit we got >

None of this was "unintentional". You have to go out of your way to get watermelon... in February... in New York >

Stop. Being. Offended. By. Everything. >

Bro this ain’t it. I’m not one to clutch my pearls at everything either, but did you even read the article? Chicken and waffles, sure. That’s a common thing especially nowadays. It’s delicious and trendy (still) and kids love it. But that paired with watermelon? When the school has literally never served watermelon before? On the first day of black history month? Come on now. Anyone with two brain cells to run together knows that that’s a damn racist-ass meal. >

And out of season, too. >

I mean.. it’s perfectly in season in the Southern Hemisphere.. feb is like their august.. global economy just globally economy-ing >

If they had added a Pepsi and a moonpie it would have just been a southern picnic meal. >

Naw, man, you mean Coke. >

RC Cola >

Dude you are right. I haven’t had a RC in a long time >

Omg! So what