BBQed Racism

Restaurant Poster Offensive

Social Issues – Hearing talk about a highly-offensive poster displayed at a restaurant in Katy, Texas, 32-year-old Ayman Wafai took it upon himself to saunter into Nomacher’s Bar-B-Que to see what all the buzz was about. Wafai, who is of Syrian descent, was appalled at what he witnessed to be an aged, sepia poster depicting the lynching of an Iranian man. Below the scene, the poster said loud and proud, “Let’s play cowboys and IRANIANS!”

Obviously not amused, Wafai demanded to have a word with the owner, John Nomancher—a man who had the reputation of being “a very nice gentleman.” A miffed diplomat, Wafai said, “I just explained to him that this might be considered a bad thing to have displayed, could be construed as bigoted.”

Nomancher defended the poster immediately, explaining that the picture was a historical relic. He went on to explain the personal value of the poster as he had received it as a result of the Iranian Hostage Crisis-a group of Islamists militants took over the American Embassy in Iran to support the Iranian revolution. Nomancher has kept the poster proudly displayed on his restaurant wall ever since.

Completely baffled by the recent attention from the offensive picture, Nomancher said, “Nobody’s ever found it offensive before.” Husein Hadi, an Iranian-American attorney local to Katy argued that, “The times for this sign are over and this is something that happened in the past. We’re all Americans, all facing whatever problems come up in Houston. We love Texas as much as any other person. …We need to move on.”

Plans of protest are currently taking place. A Facebook group called “OMGWTHBBQ!?” is quickly recruiting peaceful protestors.

There is no doubt that the picture holds historical significance-so do Nazi propaganda posters. It’s offensive. In spite of the uproar, Nomancher refuses to take the picture down.

Read more at ABC News.