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January 25, 2009
A burger tale
[Pic]
It's a true fact - I'm 1/4 Italian. More precisely, I'm 1/4 Sicilian. I guess what I'm trying to say is, don't fuck with me, I know people. Know of them, at least.
I'm also 1/2 Polish, but have the added benefit of being 1/4 English, which just happens to be the branch of my family that gives me my patrician last name, Mayflowerish roots, and haughty attitude.
So, when I try to expound on my love of spaghetti, gnocchi, and other pasta-based foods, I'm usually met with sneers of derision. Apparently I don't even know how to pronounce mozzarella correctly.
Nevertheless, I still have some Italian pride. So, when I found out a restaurant was using a certain slur for Italians to name a hamburger, I was interested:
The Blue Parrot in Louisville has a burger on its menu called the "Wopburger." To some, the name has a negative connotation, but to others, it's no big deal.
The Blue Parrot owners, Joe Colacci and Joan Riggins, said since the restaurant opened in 1919, it has never had a controversy quite like this.
However, despite the controversy, they said the name of the burger is going to stay.
An Italian-American customer argued that the name "Wopburger" was offensive and is an ethnic slur, while others said the complaints are political correctness gone too far.
Like I said, I'm 1/4 Italian. I can't say I've ever been called a wop or any other ethnic slur, Italian, Polish or otherwise. I have no real perspective on how damaging this word is, or ever was. But I find it hard to believe that Italian-Americans suffer from discrimination on a pervasive level. At one time, I certainly believe they did, but not anymore.
Why, then, are some Italian-Americans causing such a beef (zing!) over this hamburger? My best guess is that some honestly believe they have a bad reputation due to Mob movies and the poor nutrition qualities of Olive Garden, and they need to eliminate such images. But I don't know if it's a fight worth fighting.
As for the wopburger, since the story broke (this was in 2007, if you can believe that), it was removed from the menu, then reinstated. If I ever find myself in Louisville, Colorado, you can bet that I will proudly order myself a wopburger.
entry no. 1286
Posted at January 25, 2009 10:21 PM