Dare To Ask Talk And News About Our Differences - This topic has 17 replies, 18 voices, and was last updated 19 years, 7 months ago by
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Why is it that Middle Eastern people seem to be the only ones working at 7-Eleven and Dunkin’ Donuts?
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Name : Tamika, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Age : 21, City : Bolingbrook, State : IL, Country : United States, Occupation : student, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower class,Remember that a lot of people who are new immigrants to this country may have advanced degrees in engineering or medicine or law, but those degrees are not usually accepted by the organizations here. Does a man who’s been working in the nephrology department of a top hospital in Saudi Arabia for 14 years know less than the recent American graduate about kidneys? Of course not, but the Mideastern man has to feed himself/his family somehow while he retakes entrance exams, and then is only allowed the capabilities (and salaries) of a new graduate from med school. The same situation holds true for many educated immigrants, not just from the Mideast but also from Asia (including South Asia) and a large part of the rest of the world. So next time, ask the guy what his educational background is and who he has to send money to. You might find some interesting answers.
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Name : Ridwan, Gender : M, City : Gaithersburg, State : MD, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,Maybe there is a high concentration of Middle Easterners living in your area, thus producing what seems to you as disproportionate numbers of Middle Easterners working at 7-11 and Dunkin’ Donuts. I can tell you that here, most employees of our Dunkin’ Donuts are white or black, as we have a very small Middle Eastern community. When I lived in San Diego, the employees ranged from Hispanic, black, white, Asian (where there is a large Filipino community) and some African natives. I suppose it depends on where you live and what ethnic communities live there.
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Name : Jane P., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Agnostic, Age : 32, City : Raleigh, State : NC, Country : United States, Occupation : Paralegal, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class,Perhaps they are more sociable and like meeting and serving people. Could it also be that a majority are more independent-minded and prefer to ‘try out’ at retail stores to pick up tips on running a business that caters to the masses?
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Name : Juliana, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Chinese, Religion : Methodist, Age : 40s, City : Singapore, State : na, Country : Singapore, Occupation : Teacher, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,Could it be that they’re used to significantly lower wages than most people and can afford to live at such a lifestyle? That’s most likey the reason.
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Name : Jesse Chapman, City : Palm Coast, State : FL, Country : United States,You have asked an extremely ignorant and stereotypical question and your only motivation for asking this question is to perpetrate hate.Not all people working at 7-11 are middle-eastern.In fact a lot of businesses are owned by Indians from Asia.To lump together different groups of people into a category is very hateful and just shows your ignorance. Not all people with dark skin are middle-easterners.Italians,spanish,greeks and hispanics also have darker complexions and that does not make them middle-easterners. After 9\11 most of the victims of hate crimes were attacked only because they looked middle-eastern to some ignorant racist person
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Name : john29265, City : chicago, State : IL, Country : United States,Could it also be that they are the only ones applying for the jobs? Let me also say, that I know a few middle-eastern people who work at convenience stores. And they are not simply employees, they own the place. A lot of convenience stores are owned by ‘foreigners’.
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Name : Taz, Gender : M, Age : 33, City : Detroit, State : MI, Country : United States, Social class : Middle class,I don’t think it has much to do with being used to living at a lower wage. I don’t think blacks, Hispanics or whites who work at 7-Elevens take the jobs because they’re more used to living a lower-end lifestyle. When immigrants get here, they take whatever jobs they can get. If that means working below their qualifications at home, so be it. Being in the United States provides more opportunities for the future and may mean sacrificing some in the short term. Furthermore, I think immigrants really like the idea of owning their own business. Franchises are a quick way to set something up. I’d guess that most small, independently owned shops (whether franchises or truly independent) are run by recent immigrants. It’s a cultural aspiration for many immigrants to own their own business. It’s what’s seen as the American dream, really: to have a business that’s completely yours and be your own boss.
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Name : Mervyn21813, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Other Pacific Islander, Age : 26, City : San Francisco, State : CA, Country : United States, Occupation : Law student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,I’ve also heard that once one person starts a 7-Eleven or Dunkin’ Donuts, it often follows through the family. People back home may hear about a successful relative or neighbor who has owned a 7-11 and come over to work for/with them or start a similar business. It’s also tough for new immigrant business owners to get financing so they often follow in a similar industry as their relatives and rely on family expertise and financing. That may be why a lot of Middle Easterners own (and then work in) convenience stores.
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Name : Ginger, Gender : F, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 22, City : Chapel Hill, State : NC, Country : United States, Occupation : student, Social class : Middle class,I think that it’s not the fact that they work there, but recent immigrants are more inclined to buy those franchises. Those 7-11’s and Dunkin’ Donuts you’re looking at are probably owned by a family of Middle Easterners, and the staff is made up of friends and relatives. They come here with the intention of owning a business, and a franchise is the simplest way to do it. I’m Chinese, and I know that Chinese people tend to favor restaurants and little gift shops when they come here to start a business. I guess Middle Easterners, for whatever cultural reason, have a stereotype of a typical American business as being a 7-11 or Dunkin’ Donuts.
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Name : Ed, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Asian, Religion : Christian, Age : 26, City : Milpitas, State : CA, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,Sweetie I think the question should have been why are there so many foreigners in the ghettos of America where African Americans live. Because here in Chicago there’s not a ghetto that on every corner doesn’t have an immigrant working at it. I know for a fact it is a race issue. My trips to places like San Francisco, New York etc. show me that in the ghettos there is no difference no matter where your at. But the African Americans were the ones let out of slavery into areas reserved only for people of color with no education or money to build business anyway.
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Name : Covergirl, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Bisexual, Race : Black/African American, Age : 25, City : Chicago, State : IL, Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower class,Ask if they are employees…or own the place! As a business broker, I have seen Middle Eastern people take over the C-store industry (as well as low-price motel chains and many other service businesses). Their work ethic and family ties allow them to run such businesses without the expense of outside labor, and with a dedication to good service that makes them sucessful. We often joke that every C-store buyer is named Patel…but the truth is the majority are Indian or Pakistani, and they are much more likely to be the owners than merely work there.
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Name : Joe, Gender : Male, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 50+, City : Kansas City, State : KS, Country : United States, Occupation : business broker, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,Cus most of the customers are a lower class than they are as new arrivals to this country.Middle eastern folks are also very well educated on the whole and will soon quit to own and run their own business`s!
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Name : therocdoc24756, City : aurora, State : CO, Country : United States,The answers I have seen as to why so many 7-Elevens are managed/staffed by Middle-Eastern people does not seem to cover the whole situation. In our area a very high percentage of 7-ELevens are staffed or managed by middle eastern people, but Wa-Wa’s, which are the very same type of store, have virtually no middle eastern people. There are many franchise type of businesses in our area, but the 7-ELevens are by far the ones that have the highest percentage of middle easterners. Does it have to do with the ease with which a franchise can be aquired? Some other connection?
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Name : B.F., Gender : M, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 61, City : Hatfield, State : PA, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class,Around here, a number of these stores are owned by people of middle eastern descent. As I understand it, it’s a good business, although it requires long hours and might not be considered a glamorous way to make money by many in the majority culture. Perhaps whites with the money to open a store or franchise tend to attracted to other types of business. Who is behind the counter? At the convenience stores I frequent, it’s often the owner and his family members, because they all work together for the good of the business. And it’s possible (even likely) that a middle-eastern owner is going to be disposed to hiring other people from his culture when hiring outside the family. My former landlord (middle eastern) owned several convenience stores, and my favorite store where I stop in daily is owned by a wonderful gentleman whose parents are from Iraq.
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Name : Karyn, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Presbyterian, Age : 36, City : Canton, State : MI, Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class,
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