Texas restaurant bans customers for asking Asians, Latinos if they have coronavirus
A Dallas-Fort Worth taqueria has announced a lifetime ban for any customers making rude or racial comments as tensions grow over the coronavirus pandemic.
Richardson-based OMG Tacos, a Southern California-style fusion taqueria, posted a warning on social media last week after two different customers asked a Latino and an Asian-American employee whether they had the coronavirus.
One customer at the Richardson location said he was asking “because you work for Asian people.”
“This is absolutely UNACCEPTABLE,” OMG Tacos posted in part on social media.
“We will not tolerate racism, ignorance or hate. If you are racist, ignorant, aggressive, or threatening toward our staff in any way, we will absolutely refuse to serve you. You will also be BANNED from our establishments FOR LIFE.”
The incidents did not occur at the Fort Worth location, which is being converted to a different concept, said Holly Nguyen of OMG.
OMG Tacos currently has locations in Richardson and The Colony, with expansion plans across Texas.
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Asian-American-owned restaurants are hit particularly hard by the coronavirus depression, with some enduring prejudice along with the general market shift to take-out and delivery.
“We aren’t going to just allow these kind of ignorant comments that can turn into violence,” Nguyen wrote in a message.
The OMG Tacos Facebook post said the taquerias will stay open “as long as we feel the safety of our team is not threatened by racists.”
Nguyen wrote in a message: “ Violence against Asians has increased since the coronavirus. My parents are too scared to even step outside the house for a walk because they think they will get attacked.”
OMG Tacos’ Facebook page then became the target for what appeared to be an orchestrated attack by online trolls from outside Texas.
OMG Tacos’ current locations are at 744 S. Central Expressway, Richardson, and 5800 Windhaven Parkway, The Colony; omgtacos.com.
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This story was originally published April 7, 2020 at 5:45 AM.
