A Cup of Hate
In early December of 2017, a Korean exchange student and her tutor were verbally assaulted in a local Walnut Creek Starbucks. The student, Annie An, and her tutor, Sean Lee, were discussing a college essay at the coffee shop, located in the “Mercer” apartment complex on North California Boulevard in downtown Walnut Creek. A woman interrupted the tutoring session and began to make racists remarks toward Annie and her tutor when Lee began to record the event.
The woman who has yet to be identified remained seated by her laptop as she went on her rant, occasionally hiding her face behind a binder. She yelled racial slurs and made comments like, “This is America. Use English only.” The lady was asked to leave the establishment many times by bystanders and multiple Starbucks Employees. She pretended to write an email to Starbucks Corporate at one point, but somebody did later say she was pretending to type, only hitting number keys. The encounter lasted 15-20 minutes before Walnut Creek Police arrived to escort the woman away from the coffee shop.
The backlash against this racist woman was relentless, and for good reason. Publications across the country and world wrote about the incident. In my opinion, much worse happens on campuses daily. I am not surprised that the incident took place, but rather that it garnered so much media attention. To treat this event as an uncommon occurrence in Walnut Creek is a gross understatement of the hate in our community. Those who were shocked that this could happen to people we may know, in our town, are blind to the hatred of race and religion that affect our neighbors daily. While this woman’s words were disgusting and racist, I don’t expect any more from the suburban island of ignorance that is this town. - Colin Stoelk
When this incident was brought to my intention, my initial reaction was shock. I was shocked that something so horrible and discriminatory had happened right under my nose. I always read about stuff like this happening in other places, and of course it’s an awful thing no matter where it’s taking place, but when it happens in your own community, it’s like a wakeup call. I thought about it more, and I realized that things like this probably happen around here everyday but are not publicized. I grew up in a household where English was the only language spoken, so other than the minimal Spanish I learn in school, English was the only language I know. Although a problem like this has never directly affected me, I want to do everything I can to shed light on the issue and improve the injustice. I believe that in America, everybody should be free to practice their religions, free to celebrate their cultures, and free to speak their own languages. - Vanessa Jamieson
