Rosalynd Harris is a waitress who works two jobs just trying to make ends meet so that she can pay her college tuition fees. During one of the busiest weekends of the year, she was working her shift at the Washington restaurant, Busboys and Poets, when a group of Texan men walked in with their conspicuous red hats, sticking out like a sore thumb in that particular establishment, with its’ very laid-back, artistic vibe that is known for being a meeting place for civil rights activists, artists, and poets. Rosalynd’s first thought was they might be looking for trouble, particularly as it was an emotionally charged weekend for the whole country…
Nervous
At first, the 25-year-old waitress was instinctively nervous about serving them and hoped they weren’t there to make any trouble for her or for the other customers. She would find out soon enough if her instincts were true gut feelings or based on ideas that she intuitively based on their image. This wasn’t the first time that Rosalynd had encountered trouble in her restaurant, but these men were on another level of intimidating and spooky.
A Surprise
After a while, she realized that her initial thoughts may not have been fair… Rosalynd believed that she had a good sense for people, having worked as a waitress for so long and around so many people on an intimate level. She still exercised a certain measure of caution around the men, however, as she could not hide all her fears. But she still wasn’t expecting what she found on the table… She couldn’t believe her eyes!
Social Justice
Rosalynd Harris is not your average waitress, and she has a lot more to offer than just waiting on tables. Not that this is not a respectable occupation by any means, but Rosalynd was working very hard at her life after hours. She is passionate about social justice, fitting for someone who works at the Washington DC restaurant, Busboys and Poets, what is fabswinger where there are ethnic minority role models plastered on the walls. There are so many people that are invested.
Busboys and Poets
The establishment is a self-proclaimed “community where racial and cultural connections are consciously uplifted … a space for art, culture, and politics to intentionally collide”. These Texan men with their red hats seemed very out of place here, especially at that specific time. It was a clash of two polar worlds, where the left and the right rarely mixed, and if so, you could bet that there would be trouble. Was a bar fight about to explode?
A Means to an End
The 25-year-old is a professional dancer and her work as a waitress is a means to an end, a way to put herself through college. She works hard, and the last thing she wanted was for any customer drama to occur. Not only would she be risking her customers’ safety within her joint, but her very livelihood itself. If she did not deal with these strange men that she was serving, before they started something, she could take the blame.
Timing
The weekend that this unexpected incident took place is significant to the story. It was the weekend of two majorly important marches in Washington that weekend. The inauguration of the 45th President of the United States of America, Donald Trump, and the Women’s March. If you know anything about politics, then you may have guessed that these two movements did not see eye-to-eye. The Women’s March members were scathingly critical of Trump, who is infamous for his sexist remarks.
