Megan Olson, Facebook.
Perhaps the title of this post should be What Trump Hath Wrought. Trump’s open embracing of racism has people all over the place cutting loose with what they really think about all those others. It’s not as if race relations were all wondrous rainbows and unicorn farts, but they have gotten remarkably worse in a very short amount of time.
A Colorado waitress reacted to customers leaving an unsatisfactory tip by fantasizing on social media about killing Mexicans in a “purge” — and then she lost her job.
Megan Olson, who goes by the name “megatron” on Twitter, posted the violent message referring to to movie “The Purge: Election Year” earlier this month on her personal account, reported KMGH-TV.
“If we had a real life purge I would kill as many Mexicans as I could in one night,” Olson tweeted, followed by the hashtag “learn how to tip you fucking twats.”
Olson apologized on her Facebook page and promised she would never say something like that again.
“I wrote hurtful, inconsiderate, insensitive and careless words and I understand the amount of people I have offended by that,” she posted. “There are no excuses for what I have done. I sincerely, from the bottom of my heart, apologize to everyone for my momentary lack of judgment. I want you all to know that I do not actually feel this way.”
Maybe I shouldn’t, but I’m inclined to believe her. About a hundred years ago, I waited tables, and it’s hard work, and often thankless, and more often than that, badly tipped. Some days, your temper gets the better of you. Anyroad, Ms. Olson lost her job, and I think that’s for the best. It might be better to lay off the whole working with the public for a while, that’s insanely stressful.
Back when I waited tables, it was known that the worst tippers were the Sunday church crowd, and from what I hear these days, that hasn’t changed. Somehow, I imagine anyone who had an unglued moment and wrote “If we had a real life purge I would kill as many Christians as I could in one night,” would probably be under arrest with people baying for blood, because that would be seen as much more terrible than racism. And that leads to the massive problem hanging over all our heads:
One activist said Olson’s tweet was part of a growing trend of anti-Latino violence and rhetoric inspired by Donald Trump’s presidential campaign.
“We have seen a fear-mongering campaign that has legitimized racist comments like this across all social media networks,” said Maria Handley, executive director of Generation Latino. “This hateful racist comment from a Greeley waitress is not unique. We are seeing it acted out in public, at schools and in our neighborhoods. This vitriol and hate that we are seeing in our communities is real and the man leading that is running for president.”
I read this morning that Trump has gained the lead in a current poll. If you aren’t fucking terrified yet, get that way. We’re halfway down the path to total destruction here.
Via Raw Story.
I was surprised at some FB friends who only recently (i.e. last week) realized how terrifying Trump was, and that only when he touched on their nationalistic tendencies. Even though many of them are minorities of one sort or another and already openly mocked and insulted by Trump. I guess people have different thresholds for what bullshit they’re willing to accept, but goddamn if Trump hasn’t handily stepped beyond all of them months and months ago.
I’m so afraid that this statement is actually true.
The “Purge” movie is really an unsettling idea. We’re getting a lot of dystopian ultra-violent futures in film (Hunger Games, superheroes, Purge) I think l’air du temps smells of burning car tires and barricades.
The rising tide of racism lifts all bigots it seems.
To be fair, maybe it was a moment of thoughtless excess instantly regretted, but I agree with the OP that if Trump wasn’t working so hard to normalize this type of attitude, we wouldn’t be seeing anywhere near as much of it. I also fear the day when, if Trump comes to power, racists who makes these types of statements will no longer feel the need to row back on them at all. Still, I suppose that is the real meaning of ‘making America great again’
Marcus @ 2:
I don’t think this is in any way remotely new. Popular teen fiction and movies has long had a tradition of being dystopian based, because being a teenager is a sort of a microcosm of dystopia -- the whole world sucks, everyone and everything is agin you, teen angst and all that shit. Logan’s Run, anyone?
I think the Purge movies are stupid as hell, but stupid has always sold, and the idea is certainly not new. When I first heard about it, my first thought went to an episode of Star Trek, The Return of the Archons.
As for The Hunger Games, urrgh. Perhaps that series is well intentioned, but it is incredibly badly written, with nothing new added onto very old, tired themes. I read the first book because it was free with the purchase of my first tablet.
Dunno, I liked The Hunger Games. It’s not high literature, but it’s certainly miles better than Twilight and other unmentionables. It was the Divergent series that was badly written and way too already-done.
Gregory Greenwood #3
As evidenced by the disgusting behaviour in England since the Brexit vote convinced the worst people here that the majority agrees with and supports them.
I’m very much hoping the US will turn out to have better sense.
Huh? Hurtful, sure, threatening to murder people is hurtful. I’ll agree to inconsiderate and insensitive too, though calling a mass murder with an implicit desire to commit genocide “inconsiderate” and “insensitive” is a bit like calling the sun a little warm. But careless? Those words were not careless. They were carefully chosen to convey the idea that the writer did not think certain people had a right to life and that she believed she had a right to kill them. And why did she think that? Because the media has been telling her that “Mexicans” are subhuman creatures that must be kept out with a wall that seems to increase in height every time anyone mentions it who are planning to rape everyone they can find, steal your job, and sit on their butts and collect welfare. Trump is not the only one sending that message. It’s all over the mainstream media.
I personally doubt her sincerity in apologizing. I imagine she’s off somewhere, possibly on FB under another nym, complaining about how “political correctness” lost her a job and forced her to apologize for nothing.
dianne, #8
It’s hard to take such apologies seriously. It’s merely a “sorry I got caught” thing.
Saad @9: Yes, I agree with that assessment. Not-pologies are the norm for privileged assholes.
Pensnest @ 7:
I don’t think there’s a great deal of hope in this direction.
Saad @9: Another article on the same story says that she ended her apology with a note that she’s looking for a new job and would like to be called by any restaurants looking for a waiter. She’ll probably get find a restaurant run by a like minded person and be hired there.
dianne, #12
They will take her in with open arms