TCB May 27, 2021 — Don't be a dick!

MAY 27-JUNE 2, 2021 TRIAD-CITY-BEAT.COM

DON’T BE A D*CK New rules for dining in the late pandemic

BY NIKKI MILLER KA | PAGE 13

Speaking out for Palestine

PAGE 8

COVID-19’s forgotten victims

PAGE 6

Whither the servers?

PAGE 12

MAY 27 - JUNE 2, 2021

EDITOR’S NOTEBOOK

The new restaurant

I

went because they invited me, and because their new restaurant is only about a mile from my front door, in a derelict

by Brian Clarey strip mall that rarely, if ever, gets new tenants.

It’s one of the more neglected Kotis properties — no bright murals and hipster businesses, but there’s a discount grocery, a taqueria, a furniture-rental place, flickering sodium lamps and enough craters and asphalt chunks in the parking lot to make it resemble, on some nights, the surface of the moon.

The Little Light Bread & Soup Co. has a great plan: scratch-made soups and bread for lunch on a pay-what-youcan model, and a dinner slate of classic Italian provincial.

They’ve got a large kitchen left over from the Chinese restaurant that used to live here, and a sparse dining room decorated with cookbooks and vintage appliances from home.

Chef Caitlin Ryan’s food is incredible, the sort that only comes from patience and technique. The osso bucco is outstanding, and the secret to the delicious polenta upon which it rests, she tells me, is “time.”

And also that she can’t source polentas so it’s yellow grits.

She’s making her own gnocchi, which takes all day, but the mushroom ragout she serves it with is another showstopper. And instead of Romaine, the Caesar salad is based on kale, each individual leaf of which

must be massaged by hand before it can properly be served. And the panna cotta….

General Manager Lexie Deane, who is also the chef’s wife, says it was the panna cotta that sealed the deal on their romance.

But then… this is not really a panna cotta kind of strip mall, buttressed by affordable housing on two sides and the remains of an abandoned Harris Teeter on the other. I wonder out loud how they plan to make it work when there hasn’t been a new restaurant around here in ages.

They’ve got that look about them, though: the zeal of the entrepreneur, the pride of the artist, the surety that comes with a clear sense of purpose.

One went to culinary school; the other has a decade in the service industry. But Little Light is their first restaurant; you can tell.

It started during the pandemic, this plan of theirs, when they began making soup and bread for friends who were unable to feed themselves when all the restaurants closed last year. That bit of service, they say, is still at the heart of their business.

I’m skeptical; I’ve seen too much. I know precisely what a new restaurant demands of its owners and staff.

But that osso bucco, though.

If the quality of the food means anything — anything at all — in the Triad’s restaurant scene, they just might make it.

There hasn’t been a new restaurant around here in ages.

WANNA TRY? Little Light Bread & Soup Co. 3205 Yanceyville St. GSO

1451 S. Elm-Eugene St. Box 24, Greensboro, NC 27406 Office: 336.256.9320 BUSINESS PUBLISHER/EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Brian Clarey brian@triad-city-beat.com

PUBLISHER EMERITUS

Allen Broach allen@triad-city-beat.com

OF COUNSEL

Jonathan Jones

EDITORIAL MANAGING EDITOR

Sayaka Matsuoka sayaka@triad-city-beat.com

CHIEF CONTRIBUTOR

Michaela Ratliff michaela@triad-city-beat.com

2

SPECIAL SECTION EDITOR

Nikki Miller-Ka niksnacksblog@gmail.com

EDITORIAL ADVISOR

Jordan Green jordan@triad-city-beat.com

ART ART DIRECTOR

Robert Paquette robert@triad-city-beat.com

SALES SALES EXECUTIVE

Drew Dix drew@triad-city-beat.com

KEY ACCOUNTS

Chris Rudd chris@triad-city-beat.com

TCB IN A FLASH @ triad-city-beat.com First copy is free, all additional copies are $1. ©2021 Beat Media Inc.

CONTRIBUTORS

Carolyn de Berry, Matt Jones, Jordan Howse, Jen Sorensen, Clay Jones

COVER

Stock Image

MAY 27 - JUNE 2, 2021

Coronavirus in the Triad:

If you read

(As of Wednesday, May 26)

Documented COVID-19 diagnoses NC 999,567 (+6,020) Forsyth 36,372 (+349) Guilford County

46,757 (+323)

COVID-19 deaths

NC

13,031 (+93)

Forsyth

380 (+3)

Guilford

710 (--)

Documented recoveries NC

972,066 (+8,527)

Forsyth

34,907 (as of 5/21)

Guilford

45,237 (+532)

Current cases NC

14,470 (-2,600)

Forsyth

234 (-505)

Guilford

809 (-209)

then you know...

•How parents feel about vaccines for kids •Where the Triad’s newest ComicCon was held •Who makes the best Winston-Salem memes Triad City Beat — If you know, you know

Hospitalizations (right now) NC

695 (-125)

Forsyth 48 Guilford

21 (-13)

Vaccinations NC First Dose

3,477,079 (+60,353)

Fully vaccinated

3,207,154 (30.6%, +72,684)

Forsyth First Dose

133,853 (+2,465)

Fully vaccinated

122,992 (32.2%, +2,719)

Guilford First dose

193,686 (+3,664)

Fully vaccinated

179,642 (33.4%, +4,323) *adjustment

To get in front of the best readers in the Triad, contact Chris or Drew.

chris@triad-city-beat.com drew@triad-city-beat.com 3

UP FRONT | MAY 27 - JUNE 2, 2021

CITY LIFE MAY 27-30

by Michaela Ratliff

THURSDAY May 27

Artist Spotlight 2021 @ Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts (W-S) 9 a.m.

Spring Date Night @ Mad Splatter (GSO) 4 p.m.

Enhance an evening for two by painting pottery or a canvas during this date night event. Choose from a bottle of red or white wine and treats courtesy of Mad Splatter. Purchase tickets on the event page on Facebook.

SATURDAY May 29

Memorial Day Lanterns @ High Point Museum (HP) 10 a.m.

Until June 12, the diverse styles of 10 different artists from the Associated Artists of Winston-Salem are on display as both 2D and 3D pieces during this juried arts show. Admission is free. Visit the event page on Facebook to view future exhibit dates.

Roar Music Concert Series @ Sir Winston Wine Loft (W-S) 6 p.m.

Drop in at High Point Museum for a children’s craft class where they’ll be creating lanterns to honor fallen soldiers. For more information, visit the event page on Facebook.

Jazz Night @ Brewer’s Kettle (HP) 7 p.m.

In partnership with Roar, a dining and entertainment venue opening in WinstonSalem this summer, Sir Winston Wine Loft will share its stage with Dalton Allen and Mike Coia for a live music concert series. Visit Roar’s Facebook page to stay up to date.

FRIDAY May 28

Food Truck Friday Grooves @ Center City Park (GSO) 11 a.m.

4

Fridays are for good food and even better live music! Enjoy the cheesy goodness of Homeslice Pizza or cool off with Kona Ice while listening to Debbie the Artist. The event is free, but registration on Eventbrite is recommended to allow organizers to follow attendance requirements.

Experience the smooth sounds of Dustin Jennings while enjoying beverages from a vast collection of ales, wines and more during jazz night. Call 336.885.0099 to reserve your table.

How the American Families Act would help parents and pre-K children

SUNDAY May 30

Memorial Day Ceremony @ Forest Lawn Cemetery (GSO) 2 p.m.

Join Henry K. Burtner Post 53 in the veterans’ section of the cemetery during the annual Memorial Day Ceremony to pay respects to veterans of the post. This event is open to the public.

Music Bingo @ Doggos Dog Park and Hub (GSO) 3 p.m.

Great music, prizes and drink specials will be available during Doggos’ music bingo night hosted by Top Shelf Trivia. No furry friend? No problem! You don’t need one to participate. If you do bring your pet, visit the event page on Facebook to read the rules for your good boy or girl.

Forbidden: Undocumented and Queer in Rural America @ Casa Azul (GSO) 4 p.m.

Join Casa Azul for a screening of Forbidden, a documentary about Moises Serrano’s life as an undocumented immigrant and gay man living in rural North Carolina. A virtual Q&A with Serrano will follow the screening. Registration is required and can be done on the event page on Facebook.

I

n the past year, qualifying for public pre-K and affording private my family has school. While Stella has done great academifallen into a daily cally, she has missed out on an entire school routine of orgayear of social and behavioral growth with kids nized chaos. her age, learning important skills in preparation My husband for kindergarten. Prioritizing early-childhood wakes our daughters education would mean that every 4-year-old has a little after 7 a.m. the opportunity to participate in quality public

by Adrienne Spinner After breakfast, getting preschool. During COVID, families wouldn’t dressed, brushing teeth and cleaning their room, have to worry about affording private school, or my oldest, Vivienne, settles at the dining room a school that wasn’t required to take adequate table by 7:45 to wait for her teacher to call her safety precautions. for class. My husband’s “office” is directly across Stella will start kindergarten this August, from her, and he spends at least 30 percent of and our concerns regarding her readiness are his workday troubleshooting the technology, ever-present. In a recent study of programs in keeping her on schedule and uploading her Boston, researchers tracked the progress of work for grading. children who won a spot in pre-K via lottery, I begin my workday at 9 a.m., but it is light at compared to students who did not. While there first, so I can entertain our youngest, Stella, until was no significant difference in the standardaround 9:30. I plan her lessons from workbooks ized test scores of pre-K students versus those purchased online each morning, and three days who didn’t attend, researchers realized that a week, we have a trusted friend spend a few there are more concrete measures that should hours with her so I can work. Stella is done with be prioritized in a student’s overall well-being. “school” in around an hour, but needs superviStudents that attended pre-K excelled in social sion for other activities like puzzles, games, art, and emotional growth, showing faster matulunch prep and playing outside. rity than students who did not We cannot afford a caretaker attend. This foundation often full-time, so days without help leads to more positive outcomes We stand in the are spent in a delicate balance, throughout school, like higher causing me to delay a lot of work gap of qualifying SAT scores, higher graduation until after bedtime. I consider rates and increased likelihood for public pre-K myself very blessed to have a of attending college. Given the and affording flexible job and coworkers that achievement disparities that don’t mind the crazy distracalready exist in education, — esprivate school. tions that come across my pecially in communities of color background during Zoom calls. and low-income communities — But by the end of the day, our house is a wreck, the anxiety that I have for my children to have dinner is usually take-out, and I have a habit of a strong foundation is common. With private passing out in front of Disney+. school options being out of reach for so many, Because both my husband and I work fullhaving universal and affordable early-childhood time, we do not qualify for the public pre-K education will ensure that all children have the provided by the state. Our household income is opportunity to start school on an even playing too high to meet the requirement, but affordfield. ing private pre-K is still going to be a significant Even as my children get older, I am still a financial burden. So, when Stella turned four we fierce advocate for affordable childcare for decided to register her for the same half-day young kids, better pay for early-childhood preschool that Vivienne was in. Eventually we educators, universal pre-K across the country, felt that they were not taking enough COVID and paid-leave for working parents and caretakprecautions, so we ended up disenrolling her. ers. My family is lucky, but we have had plenty Both of my girls have excelled this past year, of challenges. Having the American Families given unprecedented circumstances, but it has Act become law will give folks peace-of-mind, been tough on all of us. Even though both my knowing that their children are taken care of in a husband and I have struggled with productivity way that they can afford. at times, I can’t imagine how difficult our lives would be if one of us was a single parent, or if Adrienne Spinner is a mom of two and commuour jobs didn’t allow us to work remotely. nity organizer. She serves as the Director of State Passage of the American Families Act would Organizing for NC Housing Coalition. Follow her lift the burden that a lot of families like mine on her blog at MelantatedMovementMama.com. are currently feeling. We stand in the gap of

MAY 27 - JUNE 2, 2021 | UP FRONT

FRESH EYES

5

NEWS | MAY 27 - JUNE 2, 2021

6

NEWS

Frontline workers’ deaths overlooked among lives claimed by COVID-19

by Mariama Jallow, Turner Jones, Alexandra Karlinchak and Lilian Nassif

I

t’s not just the elderly.

As COVID-19 continues to upend lives since the pandemic reached North Carolina 14 months ago, the deaths of essential workers who toiled on the frontlines of healthcare and other professions have been overlooked.

For the last few months, Triad City Beat worked with students at Wake Forest University to assemble a database to get a clear picture of who was dying of COVID-19 in the Triad.

Like elsewhere in the country, the vast majority of those who died from COVID-19 in Guilford and Forsyth counties have been elderly people, including nursing home residents. But the magnitude of these COVID-19 mortalities overshadows deaths among frontline workers, one as young as 26.

The NC Department of Labor counted just 26 workplace deaths related to COVID-19 across the state. But dozens of working-age deaths counted by TCB in Guilford County alone suggests that the actual number of COVID-19-related workplace deaths across the state is much higher than the Department of Labor’s count.

The data from this story was assembled from a complete review of death certificates filed with the Guilford County Register of Deeds from the beginning of the pandemic in March 2020 through March 2021. The reporting team also made use of an incomplete sample of COVID-19 deaths on file at the Forsyth County Register of Deeds to fill out the picture across the region.

More than 12,000 North Carolinians have lost their lives to COVID-19 since the pandemic reached the state in March 2020.

In the Triad, Guilford County has recorded more than 700 deaths, while Forsyth has lost about 375 residents to the virus. Those numbers are roughly proportionate for the third and fifth most populous counties in the state, which anchor the region.

Overwhelmingly, across the globe and here in North Carolina, COVID-19 is a disease that takes the lives of the elderly.

Guilford is typical, with 90 percent of COVID-19 deaths befalling people age 60 and older, according to the county’s public health department.

But among the non-elderly population, frontline workers have borne the

highest risks. Denied the luxury of working remotely, by necessity they have put themselves in close proximity to the virus through assisting elderly residents in nursing homes, working behind cash registers, delivering food to grocery stores, providing bedside care in hospitals and repairing industrial appliances, among other jobs. And among the working-age residents of Guilford and Forsyth counties, rates of death for people of color and immigrants were more than double their white and native-born counterparts.

In NC, teachers, nurses, doctors, truck drivers, grocery-store employees, caregivers, police officers, journalists, government employees, foodservice workers and transportation employees are just a few examples of positions that are considered essential. In contrast to the 26 NC residents counted by the Department of Labor as perishing in COVID-19-related workplace deaths, TCB’s database includes 83 people under the age of 65 who died from COVID-19 in Guilford County — excluding those whose death certificates listed them as disabled, never worked, homemaker, college student or unknown occupations.

More than half were residents of Guilford County, with the remainder hailing from Randolph, Alamance, Rockingham, Forsyth, Davidson, Granville and Mecklenburg.

A look at who works frontline jobs, and who pays for it

F

rontline jobs are disproportionately filled by people of color and are poorly paid. Like COVID-19 deaths on a national scale, the people who lost their lives in the workplace in Guilford County are disproportionately African American and Latinx. Among working-age people in Guilford County, racial and ethnic disparities are stark.

African-American and Latinx people are more than twice as likely to die from COVID-19. In Guilford County, 28 out of every 100,000 Black residents and 32 out of every 100,000 Latinx residents who were under the age of 65 died from COVID-19, according to TCB’s analysis.

In contrast, only 13 out of every 100,000 working-age non-Latinx white residents died. The rate for people of Asian descent was 16 out of every 100,000 residents, slightly higher than that of

white people.

Immigrants working in construction and manufacturing in Guilford County have disproportionately borne the brunt of deaths during the pandemic. Similar to the disparities for race and ethnicity, TCB found that working-age adults in Guilford County who were born outside of the United States were almost twice as likely to die from COVID-19 as their native-born counterparts.

Among frontline workers who have lost their lives during the pandemic, the Guilford County Sheriff’s Office was hit especially hard, with two employees perishing in as many months in late 2020.

Deputy LaKiya Rouse, a 26-year-old Black bailiff, died on Oct. 21, less than 24 hours after testing positive for COVID-19. Rouse, a Greensboro resident “died from complications as a result of contracting COVID-19 in a presumed exposure while on duty at the Guilford County Courthouse,” according to a statement released by the sheriff’s office.

Deputy Norman Daye, a 52-year-old Black Gibsonville resident who worked in the warrant department at the sheriff’s office, also died from COVID-19.

Underscoring the potential gaps in the Department of Labor’s accounting, Norman Daye’s death is counted in the agency’s report on 2020 workplace fatalities, while his colleague LaKiya Rouse was not, despite the fact that the sheriff’s office reported she was likely exposed to the virus while on duty at the courthouse.

Frontline workers who have lost their lives to COVID-19 worked in an array of industries, including healthcare, education and construction.

Tyra Kinsler, a Black High Point native, was employed as a teacher in the Guilford County Schools. She died at the age of 55 at the Green Valley facility set aside by Cone Health for COVID-19 patients on Feb. 21. Kinsler led the kitchen ministry as a member of New Hope Baptist Church, according to her obituary. She loved to bake, laugh with friends and listen to gospel music.

Tara Pendergrass, who is white, had

worked for Graybrier Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Randolph County for six years when the pandemic reached North Carolina, her mother said. The 29-year-old certified nursing assistant never considered quitting.

“She knew that there was a risk, but it was her job,” Jennifer Pendergrass told TCB. “She was there every day. She did not complain. She did what she was supposed to do.”

Beyond her responsibilities to care for the residents, Pendergrass went out of her way to bring joy into their lives.

“Tara collected nail polishes — Lord have mercy, she did,” her mother recalled. “In the evening, she would bring nail polish and lotions, and she and the girls would have a little party and paint their nails, and lotion them up.”

As the pandemic got worse and the virus spread through the nursing home, Pendergrass was assigned to work with the residents who were infected.

“It got to the point where several residents there came down with it,” Jennifer Pendergrass said. “She was one of the unlucky ones that got it.”

By Nov. 20, two staff members at Graybrier Nursing & Rehabilitation had tested positive for COVID-19, according to the NC Department of Health and Human Services’ twice weekly reports on coronavirus outbreaks. Four days later, the virus had spread to 21 staff members and seven residents. By Dec. 1, 56 employees of the nursing home and 62 residents were infected.

Based on the length of Pendergrass’ COVID-19 infection as reported on her death certificate, she contracted the virus around Dec. 1. She died from a heart attack at High Point Regional Hospital on Dec. 8.

The virus would continue to spread through Graybrier in December, ultimately claiming the lives of 16 residents and a second staff member, according to DHHS reports.

Her mom said that Pendergrass found joy and connection to her family through music.

“She loved all kinds of music,” her

TCB worked with students at Wake Forest to get a clear picture of who was dying of COVID-19 in the Triad.

Other frontline lives lost in the Triad:

MAY 27 - JUNE 2, 2021 | NEWS

mother recalled. “She loved the ’80s because of me. That’s because of me.

She liked the Beatles and Elton John. A lot of that came from my brother. She went to concerts with him. Her and my daughter-in-law went to concerts in the summer. That was their thing.”

Muhammad Siddiqui had only recently moved to North Carolina when he died.

A 59-year-old Asian bridge engineer for the city of New York, Siddiqui continued to come to work when the pandemic swept through the city in March 2020. When Siddiqui, his wife and daughter all got sick, his son — a financial consultant also named Muhammad — urged the family to join him in Winston-Salem. Two days after his arrival in North Carolina, Siddiqui was admitted to Baptist Hospital with a spiking fever.

Siddiqui considered it his duty to continue to come in to work until he got sick, his son said.

“It was so apparent that this was a big pandemic all around the world,” the younger Siddiqui said, looking back to the early days in March 2020. “And things hadn’t shut down yet. And he was being asked to come into the office every day. And he did it diligently because he was a public servant. He cared about his work, right? He wanted to make sure — he worked on the bridges of New York City — we want to make sure that we’re safe.”

Once Muhammad Siddiqui was admitted to Baptist Hospital, his symptoms only got worse and worse.

“They were not allowing anyone in the hospital,” the younger Muhammad said. “The only communication you could have with a loved one was virtual.”

“If I could go back, I would have had a lot more communication with him earlier, before he was put on the ventilator,” the son continued. “I think I didn’t really realize how severe his case would get until it got there.”

In Siddiqui’s last moments of consciousness in the hospital, he was listening to an audio version of the Quran before being put on the ventilator, his son said.

“He was such a beautiful soul in the way he carried himself, in the way he cared for people,” the younger Muhammad said. “And the energy he brought into a room. So, that way he was able to make people feel. The other thing about him was he was deeply religious. And it informed the character and the way he carried himself in the world.”

Kimberly Dawn Tucker,

a white mother and waitress in Greensboro, died at Moses Cone Hospital on Jan. 16 at the age of 48.

Omar Javier Acevedo Vega

was a 24-year old Latinx warehouse laborer who was born in Puerto Rico and lived in Iredell County, according to his death certificate. Vega, who enjoyed mixing Latin music on Soundcloud, died at Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem on Dec. 27.

Jose Ruben Lainez Manjivar,

a Latinx Greensboro factory worker who came to the United States from El Salvador, died at the Green Valley hospital at the age of 53 after a month-long battle with COVID-19.

Lugman Daoda,

a Black nurse’s aide at Camden Health & Rehabilitation in Greensboro who was born in Nigeria, died at Moses Cone Hospital on Nov. 26.

Jessica Michelle Saulters,

a Black 30-year-old Lexington resident, also worked as a CNA. She died at Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem on Jan. 27.

Mckenzie Lea Hatch,

a white speech pathologist who worked with special-needs children at Guilford County Schools, died at the age of 43 at the Green Valley hospital on Feb. 2.

Walter Delance Cooper,

Black, 51, was employed as a patient transporter at a hospital, according to his death certificate. He died at Moses Cone Hospital on March 26.

Malcolm Niles Warren,

Black, 61 years old, owned a cleaning business in Winston-Salem. He died at Forsyth Medical Center on Jan. 29.

FOOD+DRINK THE RETURN OF THE TRIAD’S BEST DINING GUIDE To get in front of the hungriest readers in the Triad, contact Drew. drew@triad-city-beat.com

This story was produced with guidance and support, along with reporting assistance, from Jordan Green.

7

NEWS | MAY 27 - JUNE 2, 2021

8

Triad residents march in support of Palestine ahead of ceasefire

by Nicole Zeniker

P

rotesters line the streets waving black, white, green and red Palestinian flags. Their signs read “Israel out of Palestine,” “GSO stands with Palestine” and “Palestinians want to live in peace, not rest in peace.”

In the past few weeks, hundreds of people in the Triad have turned out to protest the Israeli occupation of Palestine.

The protests come in the wake of action by the Israeli government, which stormed the al-Aqsa mosque ahead of both Ramadan and Israel Day a few weeks ago, prompting Hamas, a militant organization based in Palestine, to launch rockets at Gaza in retaliation.

Despite the United Security Council’s multiple attempts to call for a ceasefire in the region, three separate attempts have failed due to the United States’ longstanding relationship with Israel. Israel and Palestine finally called for a ceasefire on May 20.

“The United States supports Israel with more than $3 billion a year,” said Barry Trachtenberg, Rubin Presidential Chair of Jewish History at Wake Forest University. “It’s an appalling amount of money and it’s all militarized.”

The United States has long been Israel’s primary source of support, including for weapons. A 2018 another resolution by the UN Security Council denouncing Israeli government killing of Palestinian civilians failed to pass because of the United States’ vote against it.

According to multiple reports, hundreds of Palestinians have died in the conflict, and thousands have been injured. As of May 19, just a dozen Israelis have died in the same fighting. On May 5, Congress was notified of a $735 million arms sale to Israel in the midst of this conflict. The move has been opposed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rep. Rashida Tlaib and others. By law, members of Congress have until Thursday to object to the transaction.

“The fact that they would even consider such a sale in the midst of this is horrific, but it’s reflective of this relationship between Israel and the United States,” said Trachtenberg. “There’s been very, very little effort to recognize the consequences of this on Palestinian lives.”

I

How local activists are reacting

n the past few weeks, Triad locals have marched in Greensboro and

TAHOOR KHAN

Activists gather at a rally in support of Palestine in Greensboro on May 21. The recent surge in support for Palestine, activists say, is due in large part to the use of social media.

Winston-Salem, saying that they will continue to do so as the fighting goes on.

“The protests are to support and stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people,” said Maitha Ali, an organizer with the Greensboro protests. “When it comes to standing in solidarity, we’re not here to say that Jews don’t have any historical or religious connection with Palestine; they do. We’re just here to say that those connections don’t justify a violent, supremacist state.”

Given the rise in anti-Semitic violence in the United States and around the world, Palestinian activists like Ali have been careful to remind those both for and against Palestinian liberation that Israel does not represent all Jews, just like Hamas does not represent all

Palestinians.

“The advancement of technology is “It transcends creed, race and ethnicity,” allowing us to see these things right on she said. “It’s vital for everyone, Palestinian our phones,” she said. “To see bombor not, to use their voice against Israeli ings and see bodies. But it’s devastating brutality and aggression.” that it has to be that way for Ali is from Palestine, and people to empathize.”

‘It transcends her family still lives there.

Khalid Griggs, the Imam When she went to visit a few creed, race and at the Community Mosque years ago, she says, Zionist of Winston-Salem, likethnicity.’ settlers threw rocks at her ened the rising support for – Maitha Ali, a local and her family. She said Palestine to the strengthenPalestinian activist her family is not allowed to ing of Black Lives Matter visit places like Jerusalem movement last summer after because they do not have the same rights George Floyd’s murder. as Israeli settlers.

“It’s not the first time Gaza has been Right now, Ali said people understand attacked by missiles,” Griggs said, “but more than ever what is really happening the images that have come out of this in Palestine. Part of that, she said, is due and the reporting about what’s going on to social media. has really galvanized people beyond the

MAY 27 - JUNE 2, 2021 | NEWS

TAHOOR KHAN

TAHOOR KHAN

“A ceasefire does not end the illegal blockade against Gaza,” wrote the Jewish Voice for Peace.

“I’m excited... because I don’t remember in my lifetime a moment when pro-Palestinian solidarity has been so strong,” said Jewish activist Lilya Zav.

Muslim community and well beyond the friends in Palestine and Israel in recent Palestinian community.” weeks. He said peaceful protests for PalGriggs and others at the Community estine have been met with such force that Mosque have been marching alongside the Quaker schools in Ramallah were others, and he said they plan to organize forced to temporarily shut down for the their own action as well, children’s safety. whether that be a protest or Ali and Griggs, Cart‘In past Gaza er Like an educational panel. One has been grateful to see of the most important things, wars , it was how locals have supported he said, is to contact local rare to get the the movement in Palestine. representatives.

“This is a thing that’s Palestinian “Ultimately how the surprised me, both social United States engages with media and what reporting I perspective.’

Israel will be determined by have seen,” he said. “There – Max Carter, Guilford senators and congressmen,” is more nuance now. In past College he said.

Gaza wars, it was rare to get Max Carter, a retired Guilthe Palestinian perspective. ford College professor, has been leading There was one narrative. Now there’s trips to Ramallah, Palestine for over 50 more understanding of the broader years. context.”

“That action on Wendover was the first major action I’ve seen in GreensLocal Jewish activists stand boro, though I’ve been amazed by the in solidarity with Palestine actions in the country and around the everal Jewish organizations like If world,” said Carter. “I was quite amazed Not Now, Jewish Voice for Peace by how many turned out and the friendand Breaking the Silence, have also ly reception we got from the cars.” been working to challenge the narrative.

Carter has been in touch with his

“A ceasefire does not end the illegal in the creation and protection of the blockade against Gaza, stop Israel’s state of Israel, in her community. ongoing theft of Palestin“Honestly, it’s pretty much ian land, or abate the Israeli status quo for me,” she said.

‘I don’t government’s violent op“But I think this is a change pression of the Palestinian remember in for the Jewish community people everywhere,” wrote well. There are over 90 my lifetime a as Jewish Voice for Peace in a Rabbinical students that moment when signed a letter calling Israel statement.

Winston-Salem Jewish pro-Palestine an apartheid state. There’s activist Lilya Zav has felt maybe one or two nonsolidarity similarly about the direction Zionist synagogues in the has been so of the movement. country. To have 90 Rabbini“I’m excited about this cal students say [that] this is strong.’ moment right now because – Jewish activist Lilya Zav an occupation is a sign that I don’t remember in my the next generation of Jewish lifetime a moment when leaders are willing to risk pro-Palestinian solidarity has been so their careers.” strong,” said Zav. “I have family in For those in the Triad, activists suggest New York, and the bridge that connects writing to local representatives, educatBrooklyn and Staten Island was shut ing those who might not be as familiar down in Bay Ridge by protesters. My with the issue and boycotting Israeli goal is really just to be a part of it.” goods in coordination with the Boycott, Zav has attended both of Ali’s Divestment and Sanctions movement.

Greensboro protests as well as a protest “This is a breaking point moment,” in Winston-Salem. Being Jewish, she says said Zav. “This is a moment where it’s that her activism has forced her to sever time to decide where you stand, pick a ties with Zionists, or people who believe team and fight like hell.”

S

9

NEWS | MAY 27 - JUNE 2, 2021

If you read

then you know...

•How parents feel about vaccines for kids •Where the Triad’s newest ComicCon was held •Who makes the best Winston-Salem memes

Triad City Beat — If you know, you know

Get in front of the best readers in the triad, contact Chris or Drew.

chris@triad-city-beat.com 10

drew@triad-city-beat.com

MAY 27 - JUNE 2, 2021 | OPINION

OPINION EDITORIAL

Nikole Hannah-Jones and the shame of the UNC Board

T

he denial of tenure to Nikole Hannah-Jones — who may or may not be the next Knight chair in race and investigative journalism at UNCChapel Hill’s Hussman School of Journalism — is a lot of things.

It is racist to be sure. Hannah-Jones, who is Black, was the founder of the 1619 Project, an ambitious piece of historical investigative journalism that recalibrated the history of the United States to the year the first slaves were brought here. It’s a seismic piece of work that has already upset many powerful white people, including those on the UNC board of governors. Those are the folks — almost entirely political appointees from our GOP-led legislature — who bungled the Silent Sam episode, and also are ultimately responsible for denying Hannah-Jones tenure for the Knight chair, which has been the norm for white folks who have held the position.

And none of them have ever been as qualified as

Hannah-Jones, who won a Pulitzer for her work on the 1619 Project, and was awarded a MacArthur Genius grant in 2018.

It should also be noted that she is an alumna of the Hussman School of Journalism, Class of 2003.

So, in this way it is also a travesty of justice: There is no journalist working in the United States today who is more qualified than Hannah-Jones for this particular post. In fact, she may be the most important working journalist in the country right now. She could literally have whatever job she wanted. That she wanted to teach students in North Carolina is a huge point of pride for UNC-Chapel Hill, the Daily Tar Heel and the journalism program.

And we need her now more than ever.

The deliberate snubbing of Nikole Hannah-Jones coincides with other national news reports that show everyone else just what is happening in our beleaguered state: A ProPublica longform piece about white supremacy in

Nikole Hannah-Jones is the most important journalist working today.

FILE PHOTO

Alamance County, and an NBC News segment about people who have died in police custody after being hogtied, centered on Greensboro’s Marcus Smith, who met his fate that way in 2018.

But while the UNC Board of Governors points fingers, obfuscates and hides, it may be too late. On Monday, Hannah-Jones removed her affiliation with UNC from her Twitter bio. She can clearly do better.

FOOD+DRINK THE RETURN OF THE TRIAD’S BEST DINING GUIDE To get in front of the hungriest readers in the Triad, contact Drew. drew@triad-city-beat.com

11

CULTURE | MAY 27 - JUNE 2, 2021

IN THE WEEDS Mother’s Day, a waitstaff shortage and the back of the house

F

our servers sit out back on the porch downing PBRs and White Claws.

They just got off work at the Cuban place a block away. They’re dirty, disheveled and

by James Douglas have just started drinking. The bar crowd on a Sunday night, this night, Mother’s Day night, is a slow burn of service-industry wastrels who are finally done with the grind of the busiest Sunday in the biz.

The back-of-house crew comes in shortly after I arrive: an army of black button-ups, non-skid shoes, negligible stains and pockets full of gray Bic pens in various chewed states.

It’s not even 9:30 p.m. and the worst story of the day I’ve heard (so far) is a dish that was sent back, returned and discounted by the manager. The customer’s response? A drink tossed in the server’s face. All because the meal was not comped.

Mother’s Day is sacred to servers and succubi alike.

This year rings different; of course it does.

Our tolerance for cabin fever reached its limits months ago; I can see it on the face of everyone who tells me: “This is the first time I’ve been out in a year.”

Herd immunity is a vaccine away, and the one thing people want more than anything right now is to Go Out. And they are.

So far, this year’s talisman of normalcy is Mother’s Day, the effects of which are making themselves apparent: The lessened restrictions, the newly vaccinated, the “open-up” JAMES DOUGLAS nonbelievers who fought everything from mask mandates to Capitol police this past year — Every restaurant is short-staffed right now. If you’ve ever wanted to work in the industry, now is the time. they all contribute to today’s chaotic “take mom out” ritual that was torn from us in 2020.

HEALTHY WORK ATMOSPHERE is reasonable. It makes Tipped jobs are popular because, at the right place, it The common thread tonight is that the customer still taking one’s chances on NC’s unwieldy and completely is possible to make a living. The caveat is that the emthinks they’re always right. That and the growing work antiquated unemployment system a great idea. So, ployees are quite expendable. At least, before the panshortage. some people are still using the tools available to make demic, they were. The back-of-house jobs offer a steady Every restaurant I know is short-staffed. They’re hirlife easier.

Others have moved on to different careers. wage, but nothing more. The problem is that the cost of ing because they need servers, dishOnes with benefits, ones that don’t living has gone up, and wages have remained stagnant. washers, line cooks, bartenders, hosts, require you work nights, weekends A year ago, out-of-work industry workers were receiving the whole gamut. If you ever wanted and holidays. Careers where a coma very short-lived $600 a week bonus. to work in our glorious industry, now’s plete stranger doesn’t throw a drink Divided by 40, that’s $15 per hour. the time. Places are adjusting their in your face on Mother’s Day because Quite a few got to see how an unintended pay raise hours, closing earlier, and straight-up their Baked Alaska or whatever wasn’t made life easier, more accessible. No wonder there’s a closing on days perceived to be slow. comped by the house. work shortage. They’ve moved on, or they’re holding The reason for the shortage is a bit Tonight, a smaller group comes in, out for the better deal. more complex than “lazy people don’t orders shots and moves on.

One of One of the black button ups in standard server attire want to work,” despite what your them was complaining that her hourly cashes out. He says he’s off tomorrow but then has to aunt’s tirade on Facebook would have manager pay ends up being less than work doubles for the next six days. He shuffles away, you believe. the tipped workers.

That’s common. slightly buzzed, pocket full of money. I tell him that I’ll In an unchanging world of multiple The largest grift I ever experienced was a salaried see him next week. Nowadays though, you never can jobs, a barely functional social-safety net, no benefits GM position at a new restaurant: 80-hour weeks, no tell. and a barrage of abuse from customers to restaurant benefits, sending tipped workers home and cleaning up owners, the idea of not going back to that COMPLETELY until dawn to keep payroll down.

herd immunity is a vaccine away, and the one thing people want more than anything right now is to go out. and they are.

12

T

here are two kinds of customers in this world.

The best of them are the over-tippers who drop 25 percent of their bill with no questions asked. And then there are… the others: Those who demand service, snap their

by Nikki Miller-Ka fingers at servers for extra cups of ranch and more sweet tea. Perhaps they’ll ask for fresh lemons and turn their water into lemonade right there at the table. Rarely are those extras reflected in the gratuity.

But amid an unprecedented global pandemic that has wiped out masses of people, particularly those in the service industry, the old adage “The customer is always right” is gone. Gone like open-air buffets. Gone like free delivery. Gone like your hairline and your youngest kid’s college fund.

The restaurant industry has been among the most severely affected by the pandemic’s economic fallout.

A recent report in Forbes estimated that roughly 10 percent of all restaurants have permanently shut down since March of last year. Other reports put those numbers closer to 17 percent. The ones that remain open are not only stretched beyond capacity for providing seamless customer service and food, they are severely understaffed. Some, including many Republican representatives, blame unemployment benefits recipients while others point to workers leaving the hospitality industry and entering new, better-paying fields.

Kelly Bone, the former bar manager at Reboot Arcade in Winston-Salem, says she left the industry to find better work hours and health benefits. Bone now works for a local aquatic installation company.

“I’m in gross nasty ponds,” says Bone. “I see all kinds of wildlife like frogs, fish, bugs. And I still prefer it to serving the public.

“I do miss my regulars a lot,” continues Bone. “And I

1. Tip more than you would pre-pandemic.

Our friends in the restaurant industry have been through hell over the past year plus. Ever-changing mandates, the waiting game with state and federal economic relief, purchasing PPE and outfitting retail space to receive customers safely has taken emotional and physical tolls. Keep in mind that restaurant workers are risking health and safety in order to provide a service.

On that merit alone, diners should give extra. Gone is the 15-20 percent range. Twenty-five percent is the new normal; 30 percent is better. If you’re eating out, it’s the least you can do.

2. Expect slower service

Most restaurant workers didn’t spend quarantine gardening or baking bread. Many opted to search for new jobs that often had better pay and benefits. That means that many businesses are short-staffed when hordes of diners are coming through their doors. Customers want to eat out in large groups again so they can figure out how to split the check 12 ways when one person had three rum and Cokes, but someone else just drank water. Places are running on steam, truncating hours of service and doing the best they can. Cut them some slack.

3. Follow the rules, even if you’re vaccinated.

If you’re fully vaccinated, that’s great, but that doesn’t make you exempt from rules. Don’t use your vaccination status as a reason to break the rules. Don’t give restaurant workers a hard time about why you feel you shouldn’t be subject to the same rules as unvaccinated guests. Do let your server know you’re fully vaccinated if you feel comfortable.

Restaurants and guests alike should not let their guard down simply to maintain a sense of security and comfort for guests. Basically, err on the side of caution and behave as if no one is vaccinated, for yourself, but also for those serving you. If you’re not vaccinated, consider staying home until you are.

miss being a good bartender and the hustle and bustle. I will always miss that. But I like what I do now a lot too.”

Restaurants used to be well-oiled machines with a lot of moving parts that needed to work seamlessly in order to make the operation run. These days, the machine is missing a few gears and cogs; the pieces that are in motion are actually wedges of cardboard stuck underneath the table legs to make it look like its running smoothly.

As restaurants are being pushed to their limits while people are re-entering society, a new standard of dining out rules has emerged. The old rules are gone. It’s time for customers to have a reckoning with themselves and with their dining haunts. Restaurants have always received customers as guests. When you visit someone’s home, you don’t put your feet up on the coffee table, hog the remote and destroy the bathroom, do you? So would you do it at a restaurant?

There are two types of customers in the postpandemic world. which one are you?

MAY 27 - JUNE 2, 2021 | CULTURE

NIK SNACKS Don’t be a d*ck: How to be a good diner in a post-COVID world

4. Keep your group small for now.

Avoid going out with big parties. We know it’s tempting to celebrate grandma’s birthday or the fact that you can even go out at all. But don’t make the restaurant feel guilty by pleading your case via email for your 12-top because you are all vaccinated. And if you do end up breaking this rule, follow the rest of these rules for sure.

5. Keep complaints to a minimum.

Think again before assuming the worst and complaining about ‘unfriendly’ or ‘distant’ service. Servers are less chatty because they are doing the work of three people while making one-third of the money. They are doing the best they can to be hospitable while socially distancing. Remember, they’ve been doing this for a year while you were holed up in your house binging Bridgerton. They are past burnt out. This is the new normal and we all have to adjust.

6. Respect the shift in peak dining times.

Do not expect to eat at 6:30 p.m. without a reservation, and even then, be prepared to be seated when the restaurant is ready for your party. Perception is not reality and even if you see empty tables, you may have to wait for service.

With fewer tables and servers than ever, the prime dinner hour is in more demand than the “before times”. Cut yourself, the restaurant and the staff a break and consider eating dinner at 7:30. Or — gasp! — live on the wild side and make a reservation after 8 p.m. like a night owl!

13

SHOT IN THE TRIAD | MAY 27 - JUNE 2, 2021

SHOT IN THE TRIAD Coliseum Boulevard, Greensboro

CAROLYN DE BERRY

Ryder Anglin checks out the scene at the Dinosaur Adventure Drive-Thru at the Greensboro Coliseum.

14

Across

by Matt Jones

1 Jazz group 6 Org. that meets in schools 9 Winter Olympics vehicles 14 Without missing ___ 15 Director Howard 16 Campus town bordering Bangor 17 *”Batman & Robin” role for Uma Thurman 19 One making references 20 “Desperate Housewives” actress Hatcher 21 Three ___ match 22 Four, in France 23 *What your remote might have slipped under 26 Cartridge contents 29 Boise-to-Missoula dir.

30 Source of some pressure before photo day? © 2021 Jonesin’ Crosswords (editor@jonesincrosswords.com) 31 Airline until 1991 33 Treasure hunter’s need 34 ___ California (Mexican state) 38 What each character in the starred theme answers is (comprising a full set from the periodic table) 42 Carries out 43 Participate in crew 44 Word after zinc or iron 45 Used chairs?

46 Utter 48 “___ Tac Dough” (Wink Martindale game show) 49 *Response to “I had no idea” 55 Offers one’s views Answers from last issue 56 Roget’s entry: Abbr.

26 With 27-Down, Apple portable player 57 Line of symmetry from 2005 to 2017 61 Less than enthusiastic 27 See 26-Down 62 *WWE wrestler and member of the 28 ACL’s locale Undisputed Era (and not the chess player) 32 Gore and Green 64 Split second 33 Tiny noise at a bowl?

65 Craft in the tabloids 34 Bike race with hills 66 Alphabet quintet 35 Kinda 67 “Bellefleur” author Joyce Carol 36 “Harvesting the Heart” author Picoult 68 Payroll deduction 37 Guinness of “Star Wars” 69 Command that can also create a PDF 39 Waiter’s weights Down 40 Cairn terrier of film 41 Toy with a string attached 1 1st Lieut.’s boss 45 Stockholm citizens 2 Instrument among the reeds 46 Pricey stadium seating 3 Israeli P.M. Golda 47 “And ___ Davis as Alice” 4 Bare-bones (“The Brady Bunch” credits closer) 5 Prefix meaning “ear-related” 49 ___ voce (softly) 6 “When Doves Cry” singer 50 “Pagliacci,” e.g.

7 Actress Feldshuh who played 3-Down on Broadway 51 ___ in the bud 8 Indeterminate number 52 Preserved for later 9 Plague member?

53 Uncle Sam’s land, informally 10 “David Copperfield” character Heep 54 Nilla cookie 11 Crime boss known as the “Teflon Don” 58 Number not found on a clock 12 First month in Madrid 59 “The pressure ___” 13 Tabitha formerly of MTV News 60 Kubrick’s “Eyes Wide ___” 18 It’s definitely a thing 62 Nevertheless 22 Witty remarks 63 Talk and talk and talk 24 “All Eyez ___” (1996 Tupac Shakur album) 25 Policy honcho

If you read

then you know...

• About the Black Joy parade • Where to find vegan sesame chicken • Why the streetlights are purple

MAY 27 - JUNE 2, 2021 | PUZZLES

CROSSWORD ‘It’s Elemental’—parts of a full set. SUDOKU

Triad City Beat — If you know, you know ©2021 Jonesin’ Crosswords

(editor@jonesincrosswords.com)

To get in front of the best readers in the Triad, contact Chris or Drew

Answers from previous publication.

chris@triad-city-beat.com drew@triad-city-beat.com

15

FOOD+DRINK THE RETURN OF THE TRIAD’S BEST DINING GUIDE To get in front of the hungriest readers in the Triad, contact Drew. drew@triad-city-beat.com