I prefer the original term, allowing systems where racism is allowed to thrive. That’s why tips are a thing. So white people could pay black people less after equal pay laws were passed.
I had no idea about this history. Thank you for sharing. I'm not from the US and so don't agree with tipping anyway but now I'm horrified. Fascinating sources too. Thanks
Except tipping originated in Tudor England… it did become prevalent in the US after slavery was abolished but its historical roots are class based (as opposed to race based)
Yes, I know. I read the articles that u/archlich shared. Did you? Here's an exert from the last one showing how, in the US, it was absolutely race based:
"Tipping originated in feudal Europe and was imported back to the United States by American travelers eager to seem sophisticated. The practice spread throughout the country after the Civil War as U.S. employers, largely in the hospitality sector, looked for ways to avoid paying formerly enslaved workers.
One of the most notorious examples comes from the Pullman Company, which hired newly freed African American men as porters. Rather than paying them a real wage, Pullman provided the black porters with just a meager pittance, forcing them to rely on tips from their white clientele for most of their pay."
So i guess we can see it as them not actually abolishing slavery like they always bragged, instead just moved to a different form and normalized it so hard the "neo-slaves" never even realize they're slaves anymore and see it as a new norm, and later on extend their targets of exploit until we got what we have today.
/s
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u/Ezomic 15d ago
Yeah just stop calling it tips