Standing Up, in No-Win Situations

What Does Hospitality Look Like in the Ice Age?

Lately, my tables have been filled with pairings I’ve never seen in my three decades of restaurant work - tinned fish with hushed tones, digestifs with discontent, and worry over glasses of wine. While writing about the Gilded Age, at the start of this month - it was easy to hypothesize about a future where we would need to build both the blueprint and foundation for a new era, in each of our own walks of life. Now, less than two weeks later, we are laying the bricks for what our future is going to look like - for all of us, in every industry.

And the question that keeps coming up around those tables - with artists, chefs, and beverage folks is falling into a repetitive rhythm. What does it mean to show up, when we are challenged with choice?

In a world where we overuse a plethora of terms and phrases, we are truly living through unprecedented times for multiple generations the United States. We are now living through what will usher in the Neo-Progressive Era, with deafening echoes of the Gilded Age. Beginnings are cold, and sharp. And the drastic movement of the ‘Ice Age’ upon us is not only about climate; it’s the chill of fear, raids and silence. And of being punished for doing the “right thing”.

As restaurant workers, especially women and marginalized folks - we often find ourselves caught between knives that feel like double edged swords. Showing up and speaking out can come at great cost. We’re usually the first to be punished or the last to get support and funding for initiatives to make our industry better. And when we do speak up, we still feel the need to rattle off our resumes or give our credentials before we’re allowed to raise our voice.

Since I’m still working on my status as a recovering people pleaser - here’s mine: I am the Granddaughter of two farming families, and began working in restaurants at age fourteen. I’ve owned a brick-and-mortar restaurant, as well as built and ran beverage programs at corner bars and a Michelin star. Worked in tech and media - while pouring my life into service - blood, sweat and tears earned hospitality. Seeing this business from multiple angles - literally, I have worked almost every position in a restaurant, except Chef, and as many readers know - I married one of those guys.

And all of that experience gives me perspective, yet not immunity. Because when you speak up, especially now - it comes with great risk.

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The No-Win Zone

Restaurants find themselves in no-win zones often and not only since the pandemic - although much of that was the training ground for what we’re experiencing now. And let it be said there are some folks, businesses and independent coalitions doing good work to make real, fundamental change in the restaurant industry. We’re also facing an enormous mountain of issues hitting hospitality all at once - some of which are purposely divisive - tax on tips is a perfect example.

But this week, everything changed for restaurant owners and workers, because the threat of Ice Raids are happening in real time. For folks who have built teams that look like this country looks; for families, friends and communities made up by immigrants - this isn’t theoretical. And speaking up can make you a target, on multiple levels.

If you raise your voice, you might lose business. If you lose business, you might not be able to pay the very people you’re trying to protect. Protests themselves are often framed as bad for business, especially in communities already struggling with foot traffic and rising rents. And landlords charging astronomical prices only make it harder for anyone to rebuild after unrest.

But staying quiet is it’s own violence. The rigged system is working exactly as intended. It’s not suppose to be easy to speak up in the hardest of times.

As someone who ran a small restaurant during the 2016 election - I was filled with fear. Not only because I woke up on November 9th at the guttural knowing that our rights would be stripped. But because I was responsible for my team’s livelihoods. I worried speaking up would cost us guests, opportunities and access. Because in any industry, especially around arts and entertainment - silence can be a mask of survival. And survival, last time I checked is still a full time gig.

Who Can Speak Up?

Now, I’m in a different position. I don’t have a physical restaurant of my own on the line anymore. So I’m able to use my voice, not to speak for anyone else - but as someone that’s been in no-win situations in the past and knows what’s at stake now.

And here is what I know, many of us can be stepping up to use our voices. There are folks that can speak up and we need them, desperately and urgently.

Most food media are largely freelance now, and writers often can’t afford to lose access, even if they believe in justice - because the internet has shown us the danger for journalists who stand up. Farmers and purveyors are scared of raids too, on their land and in warehouses. And most big, corporate brands? They’re likely strategizing behind closed doors about how to navigate this moment - knowing it will come with varying degrees of accountability.

But us? The scrappy, hearts-on-our-sleeves, floor hardened, hospitality folks of the middle class? We were built for this moment. Years of working the ebb and flow of service, between front and back of house, has primed us to navigate chaos with grace. We know how to manage heat - literally and metaphorically.

If anyone can organize resistance with care, it’s us.

Resistance in Hospitality

Restaurant owners are in no-win situations when it comes to folks being in the streets and standing up for rights. Minimal impact - it drives away business; maximum impact is destruction and not to be overly dramatic, but death - of dreams and hopes, and of life as we know it today. A life alongside our neighbors that may not look like us - so standing up and speaking out comes with challenging choices.

Protesting is important - but it’s also not the only way.¹

• Home Base: whether it’s for activists or immigrant families in need - folks need nourishment right now. Cook meals. Host potlucks. Replenish nervous systems.

• Phone a Friend: can you be a safe contact for someone that is protesting? Time to put all of our Sharpies to even better use.

• Amplifying Online: Share resources. Educate. Use your platform, no matter how small.

• Donating + Mutual Aid: there are many ways for us to use our wallets. Small amounts of $5 add up quick.

• Even Honking: this may seem trivial, but honking in support at the overpasses and roadways give peaceful supporters hits of dopamine and serotonin - which are key to resiliency.

• Talk to Your Teams: not from a place of fear - rather, from one of preparation. If things go sideways - are managers set up for success with resources? Are areas of restaurants marked private, for protection?

• Build Coalitions: We can build campaigns and resources to support every level of worker in our industry - Restaurants Against Raids, has a solid ring to it.

There may be a lot of hospitality folks that don’t want to see the streets filled in the fight for democracy - again I understand the concerns. At the same time, we need to humanize everyone working in restaurants. We do that by being in solidarity, using our voices online and alongside folks who may not know how devastating this moment is for our industry.

If you work in any restaurant adjacent realms: beverage, marketing, media, consulting, lawyers, influencers, content creators, former award winners - this is a time to speak up for restaurant folks that may not be able to speak for themselves, out of fear. Because hospitality doesn’t end when we leave the floor - whether it’s at the end of a meal, end of a shift or a shift in our careers.

Invitation

It’s not lost on me, that as the world prepares for what is likely one of the largest days of protest - my generation has seen, that the restaurant world is descending on the city that I have called home for the last thirty years², and where my Chef husband was born and raised. Chicago ranks seventh in immigrant population, and as most folks know our Mexican community is only second to Los Angeles - all of which are at risk.

There has never been a better city to set the standard for how we can speak up for immigrants. We all know hospitality isn’t only about service. Hospitality Starts at Home - we dig deep for the courage to care and stand in the heat, while still offering sustenance. We don’t have to do everything, because as we also know - it’s impossible to pour from an empty cup. But we can all do something. And waiting for someone else to take the first step, is where silence roots in violence.

Let’s be the ones who help make people feel safe - on the plate, in the glass, on the floor and out in the streets.

Because that’s the type of hospitality this moment demands. And I believe we are the ones who can deliver it.

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So here is the call to the hundreds of subscribers I have at The Luncheonette, and to any readers beyond that list - who is ready to join a Restaurants Against Raids movement to build resources for our industry alongside organizations like the Independent Hospitality Coalition of Los Angeles?

Now is the time to back up of the phrase - LFG.

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Resources

Zines are about radical, physical communication in order to support community. They were instrumental in punk resistance. The No Hielo Zine - prints on 8 x 11 paper, click the image below to copy, download or save. If you’re not familiar with how to cut and fold - see videos here and here. Thanks to Jen Mayer of Makeist and Zinestack for helping No Hielo come to life. Spanish version to follow.

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8 Things You Can Do to Stop ICE Zine

National Immigration Law Center: Guide for Employers

Immigrant Legal Resource Center: Red Cards (Download + Print)

National Lawyers Guild Chicago

Independent Hospitality Coalition - Resources

• Protocol Template

• Print + Post

Illinois Coalition for Immigrant & Refugee Rights

• Wallet Size Know Your Rights Cards (Download + Print)

Chef Valerie Gordon (L.A.) - Google Doc: Immigrant Resources

Chicago Immigrant Resources

1. In addition to multiple ways of supporting - rest and finding joy, in the face of evil is important. At the same time, we cannot completely and continuously avoid this moment, while claiming it’s for mental health. Rest for resilience, in order to resist.

2. Our industry deserves to be celebrated and recognized - this year, it’s coming at a time of reckoning. The world is watching how we all respond in this moment - we are only safe, when all restaurant workers are safe.