The Meridian Mall and Deb Shops, Inc., are settling to pay 10 opportunists $1,000. Does anyone see what caving to this sort of saber rattling and grandstanding does?

I work in another retail store in the Meridian Mall and have worked in other malls. The first rule of any retail operation is to provide a pleasant, distraction- and obstruction-free environment for customers. Ten noisy loiterers who haven’t purchased anything are likely to constitute such a disruption to paying customers, so I’d likely ask them to leave or have them escorted out, regardless of race.

Race simply wasn’t a factor in this situation and two respectable organizations have had their reputations damaged because 10 people went with the flow and threw down that worn race card.

When any institution pays to keep whiners gagged, it opens the door for twice as many to do the same thing.

Why wouldn’t someone claim something stupid if they think they can score a grand out of it while accusing someone of racism? Regardless of the intent of these students, which I sincerely doubt, the intent of the next in line will be molded by the outcome of this situation.

Every time someone plays the race card so flippantly, it becomes less effective for real situations. Racism is not something to be taken lightly, it’s something that generations of people were tortured and murdered over.

Maybe the next time you think you’re treated unfairly, it’s nothing against your appearance. Maybe your behavior is to blame, or there was a misunderstanding, or maybe they’re just a jerk. Deal with it as you see fit, but do everything you can to avoid pulling that race card out and make the issue of racism something more than just the flavor of the week.

Roger Smith
English junior