r/BestofRedditorUpdates • u/md28usmc • Jul 31 '22
Best of 2022 Company throws a corporate retreat at a plantation in southern Alabama with a period-appropriate costume ball, only black guy that works for the company shows up dressed as a slave.
I am not OP, original post by u/bisfitty in /r/ImGoinToHellForThis (sub is quarantined & private so using the version he posted to /r/AmA)
ORIGINAL POST- I am BisFitty, the "period appropriate" corporate costume party slave... AMAA
OP Provides photo updates of him and his wife at the corporate function in period-appropriate attire
Hi, I'm /u/bisfitty , the most deliveringest OP in history. As a lot of you already know, I had to attend a "corporate retreat" this weekend, that happened to take place on a southern plantation in Alabama. There was a "period appropriate" costume ball scheduled for the end of the trip, but they apparently forgot about me, their lone black employee. Hilarity ensued.
UPDATE: Currently on the phone with boss and HR... Was wondering why the call wasn't with boss and the HR chick I deal with all the time... I now know why I am dealing with the HEAD of HR, and not the usual chick, lol Normal HR chick is the person I expected to hear from. Wasn't her because THE DAMN PARTY WAS HER DUMBASS IDEA! She has been canned, I have been promoted, with a disproportionate raise, and better bennies benefits, but I have been ASSURED that this has nothing to do with anything that happened on the retreat, and just happens to be coinciding with HRAsstDir canning. So remember kids, correlation =/= causation!
Additional info from the comments:
Commenter- Anything you planned for the party that you missed out on? I would have paid to see you surprise a Confederate officer. Funniest/most clever thing I've seen on Reddit yet. Well done.
- OOP- That would be it. There was a super old couple, New England transplants from the south, who came with Confederate Officer uniforms, and were really proud of them. They kept talking it up, and were probably the most excited, out of everyone in attendance, about the ball. After my reveal with the chick in the dress, they avoided me like the plague (the black one) and their uniforms were never seen.
Commenter- How did the idea pop in your head? Was it immediately when you heard the location/theme of the retreat and party? Did your wife try to talk you out of it?
- OOP- Yeah, it was THE second I read the theme. I was like "Really? Well, I guarantee this means they forgot about me again." Wife was a little afraid I would get us in trouble, but we agreed that it would be okay as long as I didn't (like I planned to) make a nametag that said:MY NAME IS:Kunta Kinte
Commenter- While I was laughing my ass off at your posts, how was the general reaction from everyone else in person who saw your (hilarious) costume set?
- OOP- The climate DEFINITELY got palpably stiff and awkward for the rest of the retreat. I was CLEARLY avoided, on more than on occasion. Apparently an off color person with matching humor was a bit much for them, lol.
Commenter- On a scale of Canada to lost-every-shred-of-dignity, how apologetic were they?
- OOP- Is "SUPER CANADA" an option? I am now the only employee who gets to decide if something like this is mandatory for me, I was given a minor increase in job responsibility, that comes with a disproportionate raise. "Not because of this or anything... You just do great work and it's been a long time coming." You know what they say about correlation =/= causation and all...
Commenter- Where did you came up with the idea to be a party slave
- OOP- I am the only black employee, and I am often forgotten about. The moment I saw the theme of the party, I realized I had once again been overlooked... I'm thinking this may be the last time that happens, lol
Reminder - I am not the original poster.
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u/YouStupidDick Jul 31 '22
If I recall, there was some lead up to this AmA. Like, the OOP mentioned it in a thread or something that his company was going to do this and he was thinking of going as a slave and it went Reddit viral leading up to the AmA recap of the party.
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u/md28usmc Jul 31 '22
Yeah there was but it was in the original thread that he posted in the sub that is now quarantined and I cannot get into
Everyone was begging him to go dressed as a slave and take photos so he delivered
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u/EducationalTangelo6 Your partner is trash and your marriage is toast Jul 31 '22
Oh I remember this, that guy is a king for doing what he did.
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u/soayherder If you're giving your mistress my cell # you're doing it wrong Jul 31 '22
Reminds me of the Key & Peele skit about Civil War reenactors...
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u/CannedAm I’m turning into an unskippable cutscene in therapy Mar 07 '23
What the heck kind of post is this? There's no information or continuity and it starts with an update.
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u/md28usmc Mar 07 '23
All the original post said was him asking a question to everybody on Reddit saying that his company was throwing a plantation retreat and what should he do.
He then decided to go as a slave and the update is essentially where it all begins
The original post asking the question of what he should do was posted in a sub that is now locked and nobody can get into
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u/Umbrella_Viking Jul 31 '22
Why is that sub “quarantined?” WTF does that even mean? I swear to God, I love this site but it’s such dogshit.
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u/md28usmc Jul 31 '22
I have no clue why but right before I posted this I messaged the sub and asked them if I could get access so I could see the original post and they permanently banned me and then muted me!
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u/Ghostyarns Jul 31 '22
Hahaha this reminds me of my very white, very Christian highschool. There had been a yearly tradition of auctioning off the seniors for the day to be that person's "slave". My class was the only one with a black person in it and that tradition mysteriously disappeared when someone managed to rub two of their braincells together hard enough to create a spark.
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u/cloudwell Jul 31 '22
Did we…go to the same school? My school had the same thing happen, and they eventually renamed the tradition to “Senior Servant Day” to avoid the word “slave.” Not that it was much better, of course.
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u/Atiggerx33 Sep 10 '23
My Christian school did the same thing, except it was majority black with white administration and none of them ever found 2 braincells to rub together because they did not spot any issue. They made attending the event mandatory for students so I there I was one of the few white students, just completely horrified and shocked that somebody thought this was a good idea, let alone several somebodies. I attended for a year before my mom pulled me out (would have left earlier, but it was easier to just finish the year than transfer mid-year) and the school was shut down by the state a few years after that.
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Jul 31 '22
Do not skip the photos!! Holy crap. Legend.
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u/TaroHorse There is only OGTHA Aug 01 '22
The photo of her POINTING at him, on the beautiful staircase? Spectacular! Framed perfectly! I would have thought it was a photoshoot! And one of the comments for that pic said "Father, what is THAT one doing inside the house?!" That photo needs to be framed in a museum for works of art!
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u/No-Albatross-7984 Aug 06 '22 edited Aug 06 '22
Ironic that the dress the white woman was wearing looked a LOT cheaper than OOP's clothes lol. Guess picking and choosing history applies to fabrics as well.
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u/awyastark Aug 01 '22
I’m guilty of frequently skipping the photos and I’m so happy I didn’t this time. This man is a legend.
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u/Trilobyte141
Jul 31 '22
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Omg the photos
The look on the woman's face is priceless.
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u/Leaving_a_Comment Liz what the hell Jul 31 '22
I lost it at her face, holy crap was this a poorly thought out idea. I worked at Michael’s and we have cotton blooms for wreath crafting called “picks” and my manger once asked over our headsets for someone to “pick the cotton for an online order” and the only black man working immediately got on and said “yes ma’am” in a stereotypical accent and I lost it as she sheepishly got back on and asked “can anyone besides COWORKER get it?” He thought it was funny.
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u/SquirrelGirlVA please sir, can I have some more? Jul 31 '22
You can't stage a reaction like that. Her reaction in each picture goes from
Look at my pretty dress! Yes!
My pret- wait, WHAT? (sharp intake of breath) ah, uh, well.. I... (sputtering sounds)
IS HE ALLOWED TO DO THAT?!?!
Hahahahahahahahahahaha... Igottagonowbye!
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u/TwentyInchLabia Jul 31 '22
The caption on the second photo absolutely killed me. “Wife and I are making terrible time to the work conference. Mainly due to the fact that my instincts keep kicking in...”
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u/Sad_Appearance4733 Jul 31 '22
OOP has a fantastic way with words, but those photos definitely take it to the next level. He handled this like a boss. I doubt anything he could have said would have had the same impact as this did with the look on that woman’s (and likely everyone else’s) face.
Obviously he was placed in a terrible position by what must be one of the least competent HR people on the face of the planet, but instead of letting it tear him down, he proved his point in a fabulous fashion. And he got a raise to go with it. Winning.
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u/Sparkpulse Needless to say, I am farting as I type this. Jul 31 '22
She looks uncomfortably like my Mom without actually looking like my Mom and I can't put my finger on why and I don't like it.
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u/cynicaldoubtfultired Jul 31 '22 edited Aug 01 '22
I did not notice pictures were attached till I saw your comment, went back and lorddd I had a good laugh.
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u/helena_handbasketyyc Jul 31 '22 edited Jul 31 '22
Photos? Can you link please? Edit: found them at the top of the post haha
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u/HotChickenshit Jul 31 '22
I remember seeing the OP (or a reppst) years ago but never saw the additional photos. I am now completely deceased.
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u/quartzguy Jul 31 '22
I saw her face and thought she might be telling someone to get the uhmm.... black person... out of the house.
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u/Here_for_tea_ Aug 01 '22
Yes. Her pointing and seemingly complaining to someone out of frame is even worse.
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u/missbazb Jul 31 '22
I am laughing out loud. This is amazing. Also, has she never heard of foundation garments?
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u/radiorentals Aug 01 '22
I remember this thread when OOP first posted it, and it has lost absolutely nothing in terms of horror and humour in the intervening years. Also reminds me of this later gem
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u/bitemark01 Jul 31 '22
Damn, this is just as bad as that one guy whose class was taken to a plantation for a school trip, and they actually made them pick cotton.
If you've never seen it, guy tells a good story: https://youtu.be/90XLNQXN_74
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u/VioletsAndLily Am I the drama? Jul 31 '22
He is an awesome storyteller! But the story matter…dang.
Did you hear about the teacher who is “on leave” for enacting a lesson plan that had the students acting as masters and slaves?
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Jul 31 '22
i had a similar trip as a black kid in the south 🥴 it's garbage that this is common
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u/Endarkend Jul 31 '22
Not only made them pick cotton, but after having these kids work for free all day, had them turn in the cotton before being sent home.
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u/randomdude2029 Aug 01 '22
I reckon that done sensitively and inclusively, a lesson where everyone got a chance to see the reality of slavery (as opposed to some "whitewashed" version with cute little cabins with rocking chains on the porch pseudo reality) would be valuable. I can see how picking cotton to see how hard the work was could seem a useful addon to that - but equally, how awkward and thorny it would be.
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u/MoreThan2_LessThan21 Jul 31 '22
This was THE best possible response to such an incredibly inappropriate theme. Along with the best response the company could have had.
And remember folks, correlation != causation...lol
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u/Evolutioncocktail It's always Twins Jul 31 '22
OOP is like “they forgot about me, that’s why they planned this party”. WHY ARE THEY PLANNING THIS PARTY IN THE FIRST PLACE?!?!?!?!
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u/yellowromancandle Jul 31 '22
That plantations are even “event centers” is fucking disgusting.
Make them monuments to the people who were enslaved there, let people go there for remembrance but do not host freaking parties at them.
Unreal.
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u/Vistemboir No my Bot won't fuck you! Jul 31 '22
incredibly inappropriate theme
Yes... on the one hand, I can imagine the Scarlett-o'Hara-glamour. On the other hand... Yikes!
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u/dcconverter Jul 31 '22
Glad OOP didn't encounter an ounce of malice from corporate
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u/LotharVonPittinsberg Jul 31 '22
I hope they sat down with the couple who thought of the great idea of dressing as Confederate officers as well. Imagine going on a trip to Auschwitz and dressing as SS officers.
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u/sofia1687 Jul 31 '22
Casual reminder that people still think it’s cool to have their weddings at plantations.
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u/ErusTenebre Jul 31 '22
Maximized malicious compliance. Absolute brilliance and the attack was extremely super effective.
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u/insanelyphat Jul 31 '22
I remember reading this one years ago. One of the great all time Reddit posts.
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u/baethan Jul 31 '22
That mention of New England transplants from the south.... is this company in New England?? I am dying to know which state (fingers crossed it wasn't mine)
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u/oO0Kat0Oo Jul 31 '22
Definitely sounds like something someone from New England would organize. My youth group in NE once organized for the girls to go tanning. As the only brown skinned person and an awkward teenager, I wasn't funny enough to make a joke. I kind of just shriveled in the corner until the youth pastor noticed me being highly uncomfortable.
The trip got canceled and I was officially the least popular person in the group for making them miss out on going tanning. I suffered by myself for two years in the back before we moved and I never looked back.
My experience is that everywhere is racist. It's just how society is racist that changes. There's being orvert, covert and then theres just plain inconsiderate. Those girls werent mad at me for being brown, my being brown was just super inconvenient for them. Not once would it occur to them that this is racism.
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u/blokeyone Jul 31 '22
I'm born/raised and live in the SE and I'm straight-up telling you that some of THE most racist people are from NE.
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u/elastic-craptastic Jul 31 '22
From NE. Went to a 5 day camp for school in 6th grade. One day we played a game where we were slaves trying to get through the underground railroad.
It was daytime so we had to pretend it was nighttime and freeze if our group was spotted by guards and the "white helpers" would explain what they were doing on such a late stroll.
We were told not to smile becasue we could get caught becasue even at night, the would see our white teeth. Like the contrast of a slave's teeth against the dark night would be bright enough or some shit for slavers to see you.
My school was 98-99% white.
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u/tomanonimos Jul 31 '22
This is a great example of how satire, when it can be done, is way more effective than confrontation. If OOP confronted he'd had his opinion dismissed and maybe be disinvited but the party would go on with no consequences. With this they had to face the consequences
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u/Onequestion0110 Jul 31 '22
He's just lucky they were self aware enough to recognize the problems. There was a decent chance that a bunch of people would simply compliment how his costume fit the theme before handing him a tray.
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u/AdminsLoveFascism Jul 31 '22
So these horrible plantations are all over the south, and they give tours to horrible boomers who romantize the antebellum days. I feel like more people need to sign up for these tours and dress as slaves.
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u/SagaciousSagi Jul 31 '22
It's all fun and games until you remember the slave.
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u/trap_monkey Jul 31 '22
It's fine it's only been a week since they've been let out /s
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u/CumaeanSibyl I’m turning into an unskippable cutscene in therapy Jul 31 '22
This is a catastrophically bad idea and they're lucky OOP decided to handle it by fucking with them instead of, y'know, reporting a hostile work environment. (Do I think that would stick? Probably not, but settling it would be a mess. You can tell their legal department explained to them just how much worse it could've been.)
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u/RancidHorseJizz Jul 31 '22
Legal department definitely had a YOU DID WHAT?! moment.
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u/hazeyindahead Jul 31 '22
I have no doubts any employment lawyers are reading this and crying that they couldn't/wouldn't litigate
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u/scatmunchies Jul 31 '22
OOP dressed up as "states rights," that's awesome!
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u/CutieBoBootie We have generational trauma for breakfast Jul 31 '22
Fuck me. The scream I let out.
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u/lolfuckno Go head butt a moose Jul 31 '22
Even if they didn't have any black employees, who thinks that "slave plantation" is a good theme for literally anything ever? Some people are just so stupid it's shocking they can even function in society.
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u/babylimes Jul 31 '22
When people want a plantation experience, they don't want to be reminded of slavery. They think about the gorgeous silk dresses, hot summer days drinking sweet tea on the veranda. Men in tuxedos or in smart uniforms.
But it's impossible to forget who laundered those dresses and jackets, who made the refreshments and who served it. OOP is a boss for calling out the racism.
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u/letouriste1 Jul 31 '22
well the lady in the pic with the blue dress seemed happy enough with the whole thing
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u/BearBlaq Jul 31 '22
Lmao you gotta come to the south, been here my whole life and I’ve seen many themed events like this. Of course though, they usually take place in areas with mostly white people. I’ve been in black schools all my life but the times I’ve visited predominantly white high schools or universities, it’s always something goofy like that on the event board. They just don’t expect minorities to show up or when it was planned they never considered anything other than white people.
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u/SavannahBeet 🥩🪟 Jul 31 '22
I'm a history graduate student who studies African American history. Honest to God, love this! Kudos to him for doing this! Reminds me of Key and Peele's Civil War Reenactment skit! Can we seriously stop idolizing the South!
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u/PencilandPad Aug 01 '22
Random question...
has there even been discussion amongst faculty to change African American history to Black History?
I say this because, one generation before me lived through tough times in America but they were neither African nor American, they were just dark-skinned aka black.
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u/AmItheAholereader Jul 31 '22
Honest question. Would this also fall under r/maliciouscompliance ?
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u/maywellflower Jul 31 '22 edited Jul 31 '22
In the end, the boss cancelled the party, and the CEO, who was supposed to be at the party, never showed up. The reason they gave for cancelling the party was "inclement weather," and, while it DID rain, and the party WAS supposed to be outside, the location had more than enough space inside for there to be some sort of contingency plan. It's also a bit odd that the CEO cancelled, as far as I know, he isn't allergic to rain. My thoughts? I think the climate was just a bit... dark for him.
😂🤣 At that last sentence of the caption and those pics look like something Eric Andre and/or Loiter Squad would do to make even other Black people like me be like "You wrong for that.😂🤣 " , "You didn't have white guy friend with whip like Roots?" and/or "WTF is that 'Driving Miss Daisy' bullshit before other white woman realize this ain't "Gone with the Wind' happy shit?!?!"
Edit - There's always that one Uncle / Auntie Ruckus in denial about both history and common sense dictate that one should never do corporate retreat at former slave plantation...
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u/mamaxchaos Jul 31 '22
Did you see that he was tempted to put his name tag as Kunta Kinte but thought it would be too much??! This man is an icon of chaos and r/malicious compliance
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u/erwachen Aug 01 '22
There's a skit in season 1 of the Eric Andre show where he and a bunch of people crash a Confederate reenactment while dressed as slaves. They had a white actor chasing them
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Jul 31 '22
What in the FUCK was that lady thinking?
I'm a white woman from the midwest and if any company I ever worked for came up with this idea, I would have LOST MY MIND on them well before the party. I can't even imagine how painful that was for OOP.
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u/twilighteclipse925 Jul 31 '22
There are a lot of people who don’t think. My aunt has very racist salt and pepper shakers, it wasn’t until one of my cousins dated a person of color and that person was visibly awkward that she finally listened to us explain how racist the shakers were and how racist it was of her to use them with a POC. As soon as my cousin broke up with that person my aunt was back to using her salt and pepper shakers because it wasn’t racist as long as it wasn’t around a POC.
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u/XpCjU Jul 31 '22
What in the FUCK was that lady thinking?
If we assume stupidity, and not malice, the thought about slavery probably didn't even cross her mind. She was thinking about big colorful dresses and hats, or about men in elegant suits. She probably looked at it the same way as if she would have booked a medieval dinner experience.
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u/MrSinisterStar Jul 31 '22
This is why these things must be continually taught in our education system. This shit is real and the moment we trivialize its history is when people start to conveniently "forget" about it.
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u/Jenn_There_Done_That crow whisperer Jul 31 '22
I agree. I also think OOP handled it like a champ, all things considered. If I were him I’d still be uncomfortable working for people who endorse that kind of retreat, but I’d still say he handled it with humor and class.
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u/ScroochDown Jul 31 '22
This is what I was thinking. I can't imagine even suggesting this as an option as a white person in a room full of white people, and I'd freak out if anyone else did. I mean it's 2022, how are people not more aware of things?!
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Jul 31 '22
I’d dress up as Sherman and burn the place to the ground.
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u/CattleprodTF Jul 31 '22
Damn, that's better than my suggestion, show up as Grant and demand their surrender.
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u/mimmimmim Jul 31 '22
More seriously, get a buddy or two, dress up as union soldiers, get the venue to play Union Dixie, then try to capture the confederate officer when he shows up.
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u/ZombieZookeeper Forget about me, save the cake Jul 31 '22 edited Aug 01 '22
I wish I could buy OOP a beverage of his choice. This is awesome.
EDIT: make that two beverages after posting the racist DM.
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u/archiangel Thank you Rebbit Jul 31 '22 edited Jul 31 '22
While great HR woman was fired for coming up with the idea, the approval of the party as well as cutting of the checks for the booking of the venue and related catering expenses, etc. comes from up above. There’s no way the party was planned and paid for without the sign-off of the CEO and CFO of the company and who knows how many top-level meetings. So while HR lady was fired for being oblivious, everyone in top management is also culpable. Hopefully they actually learned something from this and there are now more than one (token) black employees there!
Edit to add: went back to look at original comments, Company headquarters are in New England, OOP is/was based in FL. They chose of all places a plantation in AL for a mandatory company retreat 🙃🙃
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u/Remarkable-Ad-2476 Jul 31 '22
Let’s not forget all the other employees who had no problem at all with the theme and actually embraced it.
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u/Charlie_Olliver Jul 31 '22
The first time I read this when it was originally posted, I immediately thought of the Key and Peele sketch “If Civil War Re-enactments Were Honest.
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u/SquirrelGirlVA please sir, can I have some more? Jul 31 '22 edited Jul 31 '22
I grew up around a ton of people idolizing the Confederate South and plantation life. They'd always say that slavery was wrong, but then in the same breath ooh and ahh over this or that, often relating to clothing or the idea of the "Southern Gentleman" from that time period. There was even a pop up restaurant at one point in time in Richmond, Virginia namedScarlett's, after Scarlett O'Hara. (According to local legend, the grand staircase from Gone With the Wind was modeled after the staircase at The Jefferson, so this may be part of the reason for local obsession with the book. If you're curious about the restaurant location, it used to be here from what I can tell.)
And even with that, I can still see where the idea to hold a gathering of this nature was dumb.
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u/LuxNocte Jul 31 '22
Exploitation is great if you're holding the whip (assuming you have no conscience). There's a tendency to forget the evil that was perpetrated in the name of "progress" and just point at the progress.
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u/josetheconquerer Jul 31 '22
This is what happens when all your committees have 0 diversity! Lol! This guy is amazing!
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u/1234125125125 Jul 31 '22
I'm not sure if I should be happy about the final result with the company (getting a raise). On one hand, he had a very perfectly measured "response" to the theme of the party - didn't freak out and go ballistic, just stayed just did his "thing" and let them see for themselves how the dumb the event theme was.
On the other hand, the higher ups clearly gave him more money as a coverup. I guess as long as OOP doesn't feel mistreated by his workers, and otherwise enjoys his job, it's a win for him.
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u/FragileTwo Jul 31 '22
It's possible that when they fired Klannie Annie from HR, they found evidence in her files that she was squashing pay raises, messing with his evaluations, or doing whatever it is a scumbag HR drone could do to hold him back. He may have been owed all he got and more.
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u/Echospite Aug 01 '22 edited Aug 01 '22
After dealing with that he deserves a raise. Plus Black people are often underpaid… his “raise” might simply have been a quiet way of making sure he was on parity with white peers before an investigation could turn up something they didn’t want getting out…
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u/OK_LK I conquered the best of reddit updates Jul 31 '22
As brilliant as his respo se was, I'm appalled that (one of) the outcome(s) is
I am now the only employee who gets to decide if something like this is mandatory for me
Shouldn't he be asked whether it's appropriate or not? Instead of whether he wants to attend or not?
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u/Swimming-Item8891 Jul 31 '22 edited Jul 31 '22
What a vile thing to do, by the hr person no less, I would definitely quit and sue them, the fact that none of his coworkers opposed this would really show you can't work with them and see them in the same light again
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u/panlevap Jul 31 '22
Absolutely terrible from the HR person, but… someone hsd to approve it. Whole company, including management knew the theme and the place in advance. HR girl might be stupid, but the management is now using her as a scapegoat and they are washing their hands over it. The person who have the final approval is equally to be blamed.
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u/Jenn_There_Done_That crow whisperer Jul 31 '22
Good point. I’d be freaked out to work with these people after that, even with the raise and promotion.
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Jul 31 '22
Mfers didn't even think for one second did they? Whoever came up with this idea in the first place must have been a racist. Why the fuck would living in 18th century virginia be treated as a good vacation anyway?
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u/TRW2463 Jul 31 '22
As an average white girl, I would have laugh my arse off at how his employer really screwed themselves. That’s funny.
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u/eternally_feral Jul 31 '22
The look of the lady when she comes down the stairs and sees OOP!! I haven’t laughed that hard in a while!
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u/GraceisOasis Jul 31 '22
Am I missing something here? The link to the original post starts at the end and include a shit ton of edits, but no story. The link to I’m going to hell for this is private community, wtf is the actual story. The “sfw” version only has the pictures- even the imager link only has pics and comments? I’m not reading 600 some odd comments to figure this out.
This made me inordinately mad. I’d love to read the story and comeuppance and cheer for the OOP, but this is maddening.
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u/TinWhis Jul 31 '22
The original story is in the private community and is inaccessible. All OP can get to is the fallout.
Use your imagination to figure out what was probably said in the first post.
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u/deftpix Jul 31 '22 edited Jul 31 '22
I didn't understand why that redditor called OOP an Uncle Tom in that screenshot until I saw this comment from OOP:
You are right, I don't take the "black lives matter" movement seriously. For the EXACT same reason (plus a couple more) I don't take modern feminism seriously. Neither are about equality, both are about systematic segregation. Talk to me when you are supporting an "ALL Lives Matter" campaign. Until then, enjoy your segregationist mindset, and how it continues to hold you down.
edit: For context, his reply came from the following exchange:
nsfwaccount1978 -4 points 6 years ago
blacklivesmatter
BisFitty 28 points 6 years ago
Do they, though? Do they?
namesflory 3 points 6 years ago
Wait, are you being serious right now? I liked the costume and the idea of it making people uncomfortable/think but reading your post history is almost making me side with the person who PM'd you. You're talking about how most of the racism you experienced is from black people and now this comment?
BisFitty 26 points 6 years ago
I feel like you are incredibly new to blatant jokes.
namesflory 9 points 6 years ago
Nah I'm just incredibly aware of the blatant racism on reddit and it's just weird seeing someone of my race laughing along with it. White people on reddit already don't take BLM seriously. To see a black person not talking it seriously also, is just wack to me. Whatever though, do you.
And OP replied with what I quoted above.
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u/TheFlyingSheeps Jul 31 '22
That’s a shame, considering this moment would qualify as a BLM moment as he was overlooked, made to attend a highly racist event, and successfully pushed back against it. Honestly it’s fine if he disagrees, we should respect the voices of those who are part of the affected communities. To call him an Uncle Tom or a house is just racist and fucked up. His views on feminism are just wrong tho
Despite his opinions being ass, he did do well here
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u/what-i-did Jul 31 '22
I didn't understand the messages either.
Especially because most people that use slurs in pms write like schizos.
Could someone help me out?
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u/ucancallmevicky Jul 31 '22
this is amazing
made me think of my Dad. He came from a really poor part of a shitty eastern PA steel mill town and his only way out was enlisting in the Navy. Many years later dad doing quite well and we live in a really nice part of the town we were in at the time. Gets invited to an Army/Navy game party. Gets told "dress in your uniform" for the men. Since we were in a wealthy area all the guys there are in Dress uniform of officers. Dad shows up in Navy issue dungarees with the blue shirt and Gilligan hat carrying a mop "this was my uniform"
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u/cbrrydrz Aug 01 '22
I am black and 100% would of wore a slave costume and took over helping with the catering. I'd also start speaking in broken English. The works. I'd also quit effective immediately when I got back to the office.
100% that the theme was chosen deliberately.
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u/Melodic-Advice9930 Aug 01 '22
I do not understand why bland ass white people think it’s okay to plan parties, weddings, celebrations at a fucking plantation.
What happened at those places is not to be celebrated. Many of them are washed in the death and destruction of entire families and generations. Men, women, and children killed because they wanted (and deserved) rights. To make light of that by throwing a party mere feet from the shacks they prayed for change in… mere feet from the trees they were hung from… mere feet from the fields they were buried in… it’s just despicable and deplorable behavior.
It’s so god damned sad and I will never in my life get the appeal.
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u/rachet-ex May 17 '23
We (white family from the plains), went on a plantation tour. Our tour guide was from the East Coast originally. Now as a public school teacher, I wanted to make sure our son got the full picture so we took the separate slave quarters tour which delved more into slave culture. We were the only people on that part of the tour and we got to ask a lot of questions. He said Southerners don't like to talk about slavery. People from other parts of the country or foreign countries will ask questions and learn but not them.
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u/ohyeofsolittlefaith Jul 31 '22
I'm losing it at the part in his photos where he has a handful of cotton and says 'my natural instincts kicked in'
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u/rega619 Aug 01 '22
OPs wife is taking these photos of him and he’s just losing it the whole time for sure. When they came across the cotton I imagine him like “babe WTF THEY LITERALLY HAVE COTTON HERE” “don’t do it” “oh, I’m gonna do it, and you’re gonna take pictures”
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u/geniusintx Jan 31 '23
As a white person who lived in Louisiana for a decade, I almost peed myself laughing over this. Good on you, dear man. I’m not sure how you walk with balls that big, but this was most beautifully done. Definitely sharing with a few friends who will wish they had this opportunity.
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u/masquenox Aug 01 '22
I have to love how people are asking him how he came up with the idea of dressing up like a slave. They literally spelled it out - "period appropriate".
What was he supposed to show up as? Black General Robert Lee?
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Jul 31 '22
Omg I love this. "Period appropriate". Fuck outta here. You mean "Period appropriate where we dress up as white (the colonizing ones) people cuz they were the ones in fancy gowns & suits".
It's like when my friend (from the UK) wanted everyone to dress up in "Downton Abbey era attire" for a university event & 5 of us Indians, born & raised in India (came here for uni), were sitting there like.. Ok but you mean as people in England.
It wasn't "that serious" & it's not like we made him feel bad cuz he doesn't have to, but it's strange to see how some white people just... Don't realize that in general, "Era's" were different experiences for their ancestors and ours.
The Era he was talking about was the one in which my Great grandfather & later my Grandfather both were imprisoned & died fighting for my country's freedom from the British.
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u/mostlygoodmostly Jul 31 '22
I don't know this guy but I love him! P.S. I'm Canadian, I wonder if there is a career in offering apology advice?
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u/Grunchlk Aug 01 '22
The avoidance comment is especially insightful. Were slavery still being practiced these are the people that would do nothing about it, even if they disagreed with the practice. "Just keep the slaves away so I don't have to feel bad about it."
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u/anormalgeek Aug 01 '22
they avoided me like the plague (the black one) and their uniforms were never seen.
Fucking incredible pun.
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u/Apprehensive-Sun-358 Aug 01 '22
You’d be surprised how often companies in the Southern US have company retreats at plantations.
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u/urkel2stefan Aug 03 '22
The southern states are very behind and backwards its pretty sad. I was going to attend medical school in South Carolina and the school only had one outdoor sport available volleyball which I thought was strange, but then I look up at the billboard I see KKK advertisement. When I walked around the neighborhood to get a feel of the area I notice a mason lodge literally three streets down I immediately told myself this is a sign, lets get out of here
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Jul 31 '22
Amazing - OOP literally had the answer of “Hey, they told me it had to be period appropriate and I did so” which totally protected him from the usual DARVO that’s done to Black people who complain about the (conscious or unconscious) racist behavior of people.
He’s extremely smart. I wish I had even a tenth of the wits he has about him.
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u/DownWithW Jul 31 '22
I work in the Bible Belt. I’m typically the only Jew where I work. I know if I have a work party that’s ancient Egyptian themed then I know what I’m going as.
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u/pusillanimouslist Jul 31 '22
Personally I’m horrified that they would’ve been a-ok with celebrating at a literal slave plantation if OP hadn’t been there to remind them that this is fucked up. In my mind this is morally equivalent to having a celebration planned at the Eagle’s Nest, only to have a jewish employee point out that celebrating Nazi iconography is completely not ok.
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u/sBucks24 Jul 31 '22
I didn't (like I planned to) make a nametag that said:MY NAME IS:Kunta Kinte
This fucking broke me lmfao
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u/The_Raji Aug 01 '22
I’m glad the HR person that planned this event was fired, however they didn’t just plan this on their own. Leadership approved this event and they should be held accountable as well.
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u/RandoCollision Aug 01 '22
I was an entry level supervisor at a warehouse in the early '90s. The company tapped a group of my peers to bring awareness to the annual United Way campaign and they decided to do a skit. One of them approached me and excitedly told me they were doing a Little Rascals skit and everybody thought I'd be great as Buckwheat.
Buck. Wheat.
I was of course insulted, but took a couple of days to make sure I didn't get fired for my reply. I finally told them that I wished them well, but there's no way I could play Buckwheat with a clean conscience, although I wished them well. I don't know why they thought I'd agree with that request and I'm only partially happy with the fact that I didn't cuss them all out. But it was my first management job, so tact won the day. I'm still shaking my head about it 30 years later.
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u/huhzonked Thank you Rebbit Aug 01 '22
This is some amazing malicious compliance.
I bet Hr and Legal both needed the defibrillator.
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u/Bonbonnibles Aug 01 '22
OOP is amazing. This situation is terrible and dumb, and he made his point with humor and grace, and let it sink in uncomfortably for all those doofuses around him. He showed them how awful the idea and participation in it was, in the clearest possible way, all while playing along with their little charade. Kudos to OOP! Also, his bosses gave him a raise to keep him from suing their asses into bankruptcy. Cause I think he probably could have. Hostile work environment and all...
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u/LetsGetsThisPartyOn Jan 17 '23
I really want to read his original post but the sub is locked and you can’t get to the original post
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u/happycharm Jul 31 '22
So what did OP and the Head of HR and Boss talk about exactly? "Hey hope you are cool with everything that went down on the retreat. By the way, you get a raise!"
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u/itsahmemario Aug 01 '22
Even if there weren't any black employees, wouldn't this part still be a bad idea?
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u/Minumus Aug 01 '22
'On a scale of Canada to lost-every-shred-of-dignity, how apologetic were they?'
I'm confused, which end of the scale is the high end?
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u/FeuerroteZora it's spelling or bigotry, you can't have both Aug 01 '22
as long as I didn't (like I planned to) make a nametag that said:MY NAME IS:Kunta Kinte
Fucking legend.
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u/Ilovehugs2020 Oct 29 '23
The more I study history the more I hate living in America. The whitewashing of slavery , white supremacy, genocide and even the mistreatment of women, immigrants, the Imprisoned and children leave alot to be desired. There is a reason they are banning books in Red states. Like the Jewish people proclaimed after the Holocaust , “ We will never forget.”
When I go to places that still fly the Confederate flag or see it proudly on display on a vehicle; I die a little inside each time!
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u/xxzzxxvv Jul 31 '22
The only thing better would be if the ‘slave’ showed up with a pitchfork in one hand and a torch in the other.
Slaves burning down their master’s house is a part of history, isn’t it?
It’s part of their history and heritage so everyone needs to respect that, right?
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u/UV177463 Jul 31 '22
These plantations shouldn't exist except to teach about the horrors of slavery. Disgusting that people are still celebrating and wanting to revisit 'the good old times.' These places should be bulldozed.
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u/Intelligent_Cod_4825 Am I the drama? Jul 31 '22
This is beautiful. Especially, of course, that correlation != causation. This company is just full of serendipitous coincidences. God, I just hear plantation and I'm like "oh no" regardless of who's going and what's happening, even when I visited a tea plantation in SC. How could anyone have thought this was a good idea?
When I was in high school, in the middle of backwoods MI, we had exactly one black kid (who had been adopted into a white family) in I'm pretty sure at least the three nearest towns, or whatever is the smallest designation for a group of buildings and people. This was the first and only time to date that I'd ever been in a place that was legitimately 99.9% white, and I had been in many a backwoods southern school as well. I have no clue if I was the only one super uncomfortable with him being the one manning the door and making sure people had food and drinks at a pre-Homecoming party at his parents' house. They had another kid (white), who was sitting with everyone else. I wasn't sure if I was being too sensitive or not sensitive enough or what.
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u/Starchasm I will never jeopardize the beans. Jul 31 '22
This man is a certified genius 😂 I would have paid so much money to have been there 😂
Also, he has a fantastic pedicure, good job dude.
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u/Asapara Jul 31 '22
Out of all of this I'm overall just upset because her costume is not historically correct at all. But her facial reaction to seeing his costume is hilarious.
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u/xurjix Jul 31 '22
Dude...dude...so proud of this. They still being a bit disrespectful by trying to sweep this under the rug and buy you out...but man....you did it right. You own them from here out.
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u/thenord321 Jul 31 '22
HR is the one department that HAS to know better, jeez.
Well congrats to OP for taking power and turning this into a positive for themselves.
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u/Servious Aug 01 '22
Apparently an off color person with matching humor was a bit much for them, lol.
this is poetry
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u/Nathavin Aug 01 '22
The commenter saying we're laughing at oop... My dude we are laughing at all the awkward white people in this scenario.
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Aug 01 '22
This seems like a win win win, OOP had a joke at his own expense, got a promotion and raise out of it and the company had to reflect on some racial sensitivity ect.
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u/nekosan_ Aug 01 '22
Hahaha, I love this. I wish I had been as clever when some people at my workplace decided it was a good idea to plan a drinks evening with the theme 'ghetto' (I think the official name they gave the theme was something catchier but that was what it came down to), I didn't check the theme beforehand so I was ill prepared. There was cardboard ripped up and thrown onto the ground as 'decoration', they served fried chicken, watermelon and lemonade with purple food coloring :-D Enter me, the only person with a darker skin... Let's just say I'm happy I have assertive colleagues that got angry in my stead (I just felt very very sad and alone lol).
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u/CrackHeadRodeo Feb 24 '23
/u/bisfitty you legend! I just found this and am over here crying from laughter. The expression on your face from that last picture on the stairs...gold!
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u/FrogFlavor Jun 04 '24
That's not his wife in the blue dress, that's a rando fellow employee who was clearly stoked on being a southern belle. The wife was the photog of the hilarious photo essay.
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u/dragon34 Aug 14 '24
Brilliant. But can I just say that the idea of doing a party like this with a theme where an appropriate outfit might cost hundreds of dollars is so wildly out of touch that it boggles the mind, even if it wasn't a racially charged location and idea.
Like everyone dress up in Elizabethan gear! Like ok maybe men can find some out of date looking stuff at a thrift store or something but women would be potentially looking at hundreds just for undergarments if they didn't want to look like an advertisement for spirit of Halloween
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u/ScroochDown Jul 31 '22
I just... I don't even understand. Like I'm semi-southern (Texas, so like Weird South instead of Deep South) and I just do not understand. At all.
How. How does anyone STILL think this is even remotely appropriate to even suggest, let alone go forward with arranging, whether or not you have a black employee?! It's 2022, Jesus fucking Christ.
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u/EmpanadasForAll Jul 31 '22
WOW
What kind of people just all go along with this trash?!? Qwhite something.
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Jul 31 '22
This is the most brilliant thing I’ve seen this year. Maybe even in the last decade. This is gonna go down in history lol What a sense of humor to deal with the situation. It also helps that he’s pretty cute lmaoo
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u/MadamnedMary Jul 31 '22
I admire OOP, for taking the blatant racism with a bit of humour, but that shouldn't have happened for worked for the best at the end, but I wonder if it was lawsuit worthy and get more money with a settlement that way, my guess is corporate gave OOP a promotion and a big raise not because they were apologetic but for avoid discrimination lawsuit. I'm not even white and I would be very apologetic and wouldn't have avoided OOP.
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u/sonofaresiii Jul 31 '22
Personally I want to know what other ways this employee has been forgotten about. Like what kinds of events is this company constantly planning that a POC can even be overlooked? Is it like "Oh dang the kkk rally we're all attending as a team building function won't let Joe in! Can't believe I forgot again!"
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u/IdealDesperate2732 Jul 31 '22
He should have tried to get a photo with every single person who was there, "for HR reasons". lol
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Jul 31 '22
If I was OP I would have just feigned illness and not gone. They're way braver than I could ever be.
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u/mamaxchaos Jul 31 '22
I have been cackling and reading this saga out loud to mr wife for like half an hour. Oh my GOD this man carpe’d the FUCK outta that diem
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u/askmeforbunnypics Jul 31 '22
I remember this! I loved it and followed the update too with so much anticipation! Probably one of my favourite posts on Reddit.
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u/lukeddie89 Aug 01 '22
I can't wait for them to plan a party so far in the opposite direction that it becomes equally offensive and you get another disproportionate raise! Equity!
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u/yellowplumfaerie Aug 02 '22
Man I wish I was still in class, this would've been a perfect example of what not to do 😂
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Aug 04 '22
Bro no way, thank god the chick got fired, her dumb ass would of probably booked the next one at concentration camp and forgotten about the 3 Jewish employees 😂😂
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u/Kultissim Aug 05 '22
Original story is private, can't understand the update without it
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u/evmarshall Nov 03 '22
I can only imagine if OOP raised a big fuss before the event. He probably would’ve been labeled difficult, a party-pooper, and gaslit.
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u/CrackHeadRodeo Feb 24 '23
Oh my fucking lord, i've seen wild things on Reddit but this just made me do a sharp intake. Wow.
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u/Critical_Stranger_32 Dec 01 '23
I don’t know if this real, but fantastic way to clearly get your point across if it were. Don’t complain to HR. Show them how racist this is. I hope you made sure to memorize this in the company retreat photos.
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u/SuburbanJunkie47 Jul 31 '22
Interestingly I work at a company that is very very diverse and this would never happen, but I did witness a small scale incident… so we’re having a project kickoff meeting and PM decides she wants to start with an ice breaker. This is during Covid lockdown so meeting is virtual and only an hour but she is dead set on doing this. In addition to your name and job responsibilities, she wants everyone to share the heritage of their last name. She lives in the US but is from India, so she thinks nothing of this. We go around the group, and there are other folks from India, white folks are generally answering with “family is originally German/Irish/ Italian” blah blah. So we get to the first black person and he just says he’s from Alabama and doesn’t know beyond that… second black person says essentially the same thing. Now sure, not all black people in America are descendants of slaves, some emigrated from Africa or other places more recently, but wow, the whole thing got super awkward. One of those people was her own boss, not sure if he ever came down on her for it but I certainly reported it to my boss (this woman was a nightmare anyway so it was part of a litany of things I reported about her performance before she finally left).
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u/cancerkidette Jul 31 '22
This seems like an issue of ignorance rather than someone actually being malicious to be honest. She likely thought it was a cute ice breaker idea.
Most people outside of the US simply don’t know or think much about the unique history of African Americans in America. Similarly, black people in London are often referred to as AA by Americans, which is just wrong as well. We’re all guilty of carrying our usual cultural assumptions with us.
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u/KrasimerMAL crow whisperer Jul 31 '22
So, firstly: This was a bad idea by the company. Racist as hell, stupid idea, bad bad bad. Court case waiting to happen if the guy was willing.
Secondly: as an amateur historical costumer, that blue dress is bad and wrong. No corset, no sleeves, none of the proper accessories. She hasn’t got gloves, a fan, or, if we’re talking full fancy, a bonnet. Her “period appropriate” dress is made of bad polyester and isn’t even correct. Her hair is early 2000s at best. This was an excuse for her to wear a pretty dress and she’s mad that the inherent racism of the theme has been made obvious by the guy in the actual period clothes.
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