DELIMAN092262
Well-Known Member
Admiral_Snackbar's thread reminded me of something..
I have a question for the members of this forum. I work in a deli at a local supermarket (surprise). This means dealing with the public. The public demands respect, but mostly they want speed. Most adults do not like “disturbances” like children crying and make loud noise. This creates tension and stress, something most adult feel overloaded with.
My deli, and in many others, we give children cheese to munch on. The result: the crying stops and the tension goes away. I hold out the cheese to a parent and say something like, “some cheese for your kids?” If there is a daughter or daughters, “some cheese for your girl/girls?” Likewise for sons, “some cheese for your boy/boys”.
Considering the bad racial history of this country the last thing I wish to do is offend anybody. To refer to an African-American male person as a boy could be considered very OFFENSIVE. This leads to my question.
If an Africa-American family is in my deli and they only have sons. I would offer, “cheese for your sons?” or “cheese for your children?”.
In my attempt to not offend them am I really offending them? I use a different word to describe their sons. Is that offensive?
Or, is this something out of nothing?
Deli humor: We slice the cheese. We don’t cut it!
I have a question for the members of this forum. I work in a deli at a local supermarket (surprise). This means dealing with the public. The public demands respect, but mostly they want speed. Most adults do not like “disturbances” like children crying and make loud noise. This creates tension and stress, something most adult feel overloaded with.
My deli, and in many others, we give children cheese to munch on. The result: the crying stops and the tension goes away. I hold out the cheese to a parent and say something like, “some cheese for your kids?” If there is a daughter or daughters, “some cheese for your girl/girls?” Likewise for sons, “some cheese for your boy/boys”.
Considering the bad racial history of this country the last thing I wish to do is offend anybody. To refer to an African-American male person as a boy could be considered very OFFENSIVE. This leads to my question.
If an Africa-American family is in my deli and they only have sons. I would offer, “cheese for your sons?” or “cheese for your children?”.
In my attempt to not offend them am I really offending them? I use a different word to describe their sons. Is that offensive?
Or, is this something out of nothing?
Deli humor: We slice the cheese. We don’t cut it!
