So now i'm a racist...

[White_Knight1989]

I just started my new job at the front desk of a local gym on Monday. So far I LOVE this new job. My co-workers are amazing and through their help I am just about completely trained and ready to be on my own next week. The customers are great too, with the exception of this one earlier today.

To enter the gym, you must have three things:
1. Gym membership card
2. Photo ID
3. Towel

We generally do not deny entrance into the gym if somebody doesn't have one of these items, though we do give a polite reminder, and note the account so we can track patterns of rule breakage on a particular customer. That being said, we are more than happy to photo copy drivers licenses, and put them in these nifty little plastic sleeves we have that can hold both the membership card and a photocopied ID card. Having this done makes the process very simple thereafter for the customer and makes checking into the gym a 3-second process.

So today I'm answering phones, checking in, entering info in the computer, etc. like normal when an African American woman (it's important to note the race) comes in, and tosses me her membership card.

Me: *looks at name on membership card* "Do you have photo ID with you today, Rosa?" (name changed)

She shows me her ID. "Thank you, Rosa" I reply as I hand her back her membership card.

As she stalks off she says "I guess you check some IDs and not others, huh?"

Me:

It bothers me that she implied that i'm a racist.

I didn't have to ask for the IDs of the three white women who checked in before her because all three had their cards and photo IDs already in their sleeves. Some people actually UNDERSTAND the process, and want to make it easier on THEMSELVES.

When I had a free moment I researched her account notes and saw that she has a history of either not or not wanting to provide I.D. Too many of these and we can refuse service. I plan to bring this to the OM if she pulls that crud again.

The kicker of all this? When I asked for photo ID from her, she actually had it ready, in her other hand, down by her waist. Had she just shown me both from the get go, she would have been on her merry way. I'm thoroughly convinced she was looking for a fight.

A couple hours after this gem, another one unfortunately crosses my path.

Me: "Hi ma'am. Do we have some photo I.D. today?"
Woman: *huffing as she pulls out her wallet* I've been coming to this gym since 1997! They never ask me for I.D.! Jane always lets me through without it!"
Me: *nonchalantly as I scan her card in* "Sorry, I'm not Jane."
Woman: *shakes head and walks away*

Whatever. Nobody is above the rules when I'm working. It's my territory during my shift

[RammsteinGirl]

Although it's hard, I'd just ignore it and do your job. If they have no I.D., then tough shit, no entrance to the gym. It's honestly not THAT hard to pull out your I.D. I always wonder about people who do not carry their I.D. with them when they are out and about, especially if they are driving.. what if they got pulled over by a cop? "Officer, NO ONE ELSE makes me show MY I.D.! I've been paying taxes here for 30 years and this is BULLSHIT!" Would love to see how that would play out!! Can you say.. tasered?

Keep standing your ground with the customers and don't let them try to push you over.

[Bright_Star]

Why do people make such a fuss over showing their ID when all it takes is just a few seconds?

[BookstoreEscapee]

OK, when I go in to work and pass the same security guards every morning and they stop actually looking at my ID, and then one day a different guard is there and she wants to see it, do I huff and puff and whine that the other guys see me every day and I don't have to show them my ID? No! Cuz she's not the other guys and she doesn't see me every day! (Never mind the fact that the door is locked by the time I get there and if I didn't have my badge I wouldn't be able to open it in the first place, lol.)

Gee, what a concept. I swear some people think all the employees of an establishment share the same brain and just hand it off to the next person at shift change, and then lock it in the office at night.

[Namrepus221]

I'm guessing this is a gym for Hoopty Frood's only eh?

(Plus 3 internets to anyone who knows what I'm talking about )

[CancelMyService]

Once during a busy holiday rush at Circuit City, I once had a man from India claim I refused to help him because he was black

Now I did walk past him a few times, but the reason I didn't stop to answer his questions was because there was at least 10 others who were already waiting for help.

Also, while he did have a dark complexion, when did Indian = black? The way he said it was almost as if someone told him that was what to do to get people to do what you want.

[Broomjockey]

I'm guessing this is a gym for Hoopty Frood's only eh?

(Plus 3 internets to anyone who knows what I'm talking about )

3. Towel

Is it related to that? (42 for life! )

But I hatehatehatehatehatehatehatehatehateHATE people who go "But soandso did it" or "But I never had to before." GUESS WHAT!!! THAT person broke the rules. I will NOT do that for you. In fact tell me who did do that for you, and I'll tell management. I guarantee they won't be doing it again, one way or another.

And I had someone accuse me of being racist once for checking their ticket on their way into an auditorium. First off buddy, your friend did not have a ticket, second, my manager told me to watch you, otherwise I'd have not given you a second glance, thirdly, that's a kid's movie just across from us, with the doors open, so stop swearing so loudly. You're just pissed because you don't get to see a free movie.

[blas]

My ex manager and the assistant manager are both full blooded Native Americans. So, fortunately, the race card NEVER flew at the gas station, at least when they were working. Anyone who was dumb enough to try to play the race card was immediately turned down cold.

Nobody believes I have any Native in me because I look more German than anything else, but for once I'd love to just throw it right back in their face that I'm not 100% white and see what someone would say.

[ArenaBoy]

To me anyone pulling the race card about something as simple as photo ID means that said person is a cry baby about the smallest things. I was once called a racist by a African-American because he didn't have a pass, it was really funny seeing him get chewed out by a African-American coworker when he tried to ask for his help.

[Imogene]

I'm guessing this is a gym for Hoopty Frood's only eh?

Er... What kind of a frood is hoopty? Is that only reserved for cars? I know of Hoopy Froods, and you gotta have your towel to be a hoopy frood. You just gotta!

[Boozy]

Being falsely accused of racism is an assault on your character and morals. Even when you KNOW its not true, it can be very upsetting.

I'd rather be called stupid than a racist.

[ReverendBSB]

When I was assistant manager at a pizza buffet we had a lot of customers order water, then get soda. So I told the employees to only give clear plastic cups to people who order water so we could catch them. On the first day of doing this I saw two women, who I knew ordered water drinking pepsi. So I printed out a ticket for two drinks, brought it over to their table, and told them to pay it before they left. They did, but called me racist because I had not said anything to the two pretty white girls drinking soda out of clear cups at the table next to them. I told them that they were the only people who had ordered water, they didnt believe me, so I went over to the girls table, asked if I could borrow their receipt for a minute, and showed it to the women. Two buffets, two drinks. They shut up and left, and I dont remember ever seeing them again.

[TonyDonuts]

I'm thoroughly convinced she was looking for a fight.

I've got a regular customer. I see him every other day or so.

He hates me.

He hates my employees.

He hates my store.

He hates my company.

He hates, as far as I can see, everything..

He stalks across the parking lot radiating anger, stalks through the front door, and then stomps around the store, until he finds something to complain about.

This can take up to twenty minutes, although if he has an ax to grind as little as three, enough time to stalk in the door, grab his one pack of Beer Nuts (all he ever buys) and come to the counter.

He spent a week decrying the OBVIOUS illegality of the State of Minnesota levying a sales tax on Beer Nuts.

My store used to be owned by another company, a company that put price tags on everything instead of scanning bar codes. We spent two and a half weeks going over every piece of merchandise in the store either pulling off price tags, or putting new ones on. One of the employees who worked for the old company didn't quite get that New Company didn't use price tags and so he would tag everything in sight if you weren't looking.

So for two and a half weeks Angry Man would come in and LOOK for price tags that didn't match shelf tags. When he found one, and this took more and more effort as time passed, he would take it and his Beer Nuts to the front counter, complain about the tax on the Beer Nuts, again, and complain about how the price tag didn't match the shelf tag. He would then stare, stare at me, then shake his head, buy the Beer Nuts, and leave.

What really seems to irk him is that nobody will take the bait.

I'm waiting for him to have a strok. Over Beer Nuts.

[aurelemsrealm]

Oh yeah, I just love the racists. The ones who scream about racism are the worst of the racists.

We used to have the sweetest, most grandmotherly black lady you could imagine working at our location. We nicknamed her "Granny." She and I usually worked the weekend afternoon shift together. She made work a lot of fun because you never knew what she'd say next. It was quite comical. The only drawback to working with her was that she was so afraid of making mistakes that it sometimes felt like I was running her register as well as my own when we were busy.

So, this one weekend, some young black girl comes to my line and asks for a pack of cigarettes. I'd never seen her before that I could remember. I grab her choice, scan the pack, and ask for her ID. She starts in with the standard, "I don't have my ID with me because they never ask...."

Yeah, whatever. I'm not falling for it, and I stop her before she could say anything else. I tell her that I can't sell her cigarettes without seeing the ID. She starts in again with the, "The others never card me...."

I tell her the nice version of get your ID, or get out of my sight. Those are your choices. I swear I get so sick of hearing that crap that I just want to box them upside the head, but try to remain polite unless they decide to throw a tantrum.

So, she goes over to Granny's line. Granny had just seen her at my line, so she told her that she'd have to go get her ID first. The girl made some comment I didn't catch because I was already waiting on another customer. The next thing I know, Granny let her have it, "I don't care what color you are! I'm not giving you any special treatment! Everyone's the same, no one's better!"

I couldn't help myself. I just busted out laughing, "I can't believe you said that!"

"Well, I get so sick of that crap!"

"You're right," and I just kept laughing.

Granny started laughing, too, and so did the customer in my line.

Unfortunately, Granny moved and transferred to another of our stores closer to her new home. I haven't seen her in a while, but I do get the chance to talk to her on the phone occasionally if she calls with a question about how to do something. Her new store is a little slower than ours, so she's doing better on her own there. Some of the regulars really miss her. They keep asking about her. I'll always remember that one incident, though.

[blas]

At the grocery store, when I was still in high school, for a very brief amount of time, a young black guy worked as a bagger. I will call him B.

I loved it when he was my bagger while I cashiered. When it got busy, B would always go "Goood Lawwwwwd!" and randomly go "Woooo hoooo!" and "Yaaaahhh!"......don't ask I just found it extremely funny.

One day a black guy and his girlfriend and their baby came through my line with a foodstamp order. They tried to get some kind of meat from the deli (and foodstamp rules state No Prepared Food!).

When the guy realized he was getting nowere with me, he begged of B, "Come on dude, help a nigga out!"

B's jaw nearly dropped to the floor and he said "What did you just call me?"

It was like a remake of the scene from the 40 Year Old Virgin where the black guy tells the other one "It's okay dude, we're the same, we can call each other that!"

It didn't fly with B very well.