If Norman Brinker (founder ofChilis) were around today, hed give the machine gun toting idiots walking into Chilis a lesson in southern manners for sure! When I was about 14, my Dad asked me to go with him and his friend, Norman, to grab a bite at the On The Boarder located near the old Highland Park Cafeteria. Once there, they asked me to sit in the booth next to theirs and pretend I wasnt with them. I did and was treated to the most racist waitress you could imagine and the manager simply watched. At the end of the meal, when the check was brought, Norman turned around and said, Ill take that., and put his credit card on the bill. The waitress nearly died seeing the CEO of Brinker International sitting there! She immediately whispered to the manager who, with her, came over to the table, both of them ready to obviously kiss up, with huge enthusiastic smiles on their faces. But Norman raised his hand, silencing them and said, Dont waste my time. Ive been hearing reports of both of you behaving rudely to customers who arent white and had to see for myself if they were true. Youre fired. Dont bother applying to any of my businesses. My Dad added, Or mine, ( Southland Corp - 7-Eleven) and both men walked with me to the door. Ill never forget the look on the womens faces, and Ill never forget the zero-tolerance policy Mr.Brinker had for racism, and how my father had not only backed his friend, but later told me, Mary Ann, thats what leadership is: find out the truth, witness it, and never be silent. If you are silent, you are just as bad as those who commit the racist action, or whatever the issue is.
Posted on: Sat, 07 Jun 2014 20:46:54 +0000
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