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Surprise Blacklist Keeps Me From Zorba's Restaurant |
Current rating: 0 |
by Charles Joseph Smith
Email: charlessmith702210 (nospam) sbcglobal.net (unverified!)
Phone: (773)621-5275
Address: 1710 W. 106th St., Chicago, IL 60643 |
15 Sep 2006
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I made good friends during Zorba's jazz nights in past years, but recently, taking out of something from McCarthyism, I was blacklisted from Zorba's on a trumped-up charge of panhandling. But I never do such
things at all. Looks like an inside job.......... |
This actual letter was originally written by me
on September 2, 2006:
As an alumnus of the University of Illinois School of Music (MM '95, DMA '02), majoring in piano performance and very talented in music composition in both classical and jazz, I had wanted to see some of my good jazz friends at Zorba's last Thursday. (Zorba's is located between 6th and Wright Streets on Green Street.) Then one Zorba employee who was a doorman recognized me with a mean face and said "I don't want you soliciting." Yet I did not intend to.
As a result, I am staying in Chicago this weekend and thinking of filing a racial discrimination lawsuit against Zorba's. But I think it won't work....because I only work part-time and I can't pay lawyers too much for what I fear is going to be a lawsuit where Zorba's is going to win the case or settle it out of court.
Zorba's required no dress code at all in their Thursday jazz nights, but regrettably,
the cover charge for these nights spiked up to $5 (originally it was $3).
The reason is capacity issues, because Zorba's jazz nights are always crowded and usually it is standing room only in the peak of their concerts, but I think that this is a quasi- counterinsurgent job
that singled me as a target for racial harrassment.
Some of the workers at Zorba's realized that I was exchanging business cards last year during their jazz nights. This was not panhandling, but because of my race (I am African-American), the employees at Zorba's thought the exchanging of business cards was soliciting. There was no sign saying that "no soliciting" was allowed. I happen to be a creative musician but I was not immune. Zorba's was a good place for creative jazz musicians to turn out and I thought the Zorba's employees had
made me good friends.
But it was a big about face, and they don't want me at jazz nights anymore unless
I promised not to exchange business cards anymore. At worst, they may call the police and arrest me as a solicitor or even a trespasser if I don't be very careful at
Zorba's.
I can conclude that I was racially harrased because I was mistaken as a panhandler.
But I never intend to panhandle---I was not asking for money.
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This incident reminded me of the wrongful
killing of Ernest Seri, who was DMA candidate who was killed by a bouncer at
what was called Gypsy's in Champaign because of his African descent. Thank God this thing I faced did not end in death or a bar fight but
it reminded me that racism is still not completely eliminated in Champaign-Urbana.
I also have very deep regrets for Patrick Thompson, who was caught unfairly in a felonious eavesdropping case just simply for videotaping police stops to thwart racial profiling of police.
As a result of this incident, I strongly encourage you to come to John Martirano's
house party on 314 S. Elm St. in Champaign, which will start all night, on Saturday, September 16, so we can talk about what we can do.......
---Charles Smith
Creative Musician and "The Little Gene of
Composing" |
See also:
http://www.illinimedia.com/di/apr_00/apr07/news/news03.shtml
http://cityguide.aol.com/champaign/restaurants/zorbas/v-108719905?type=details
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This work is in the public domain |
