Harlem is Not a Foreign Country

The other night my family and I went to Minton's to celebrate my father's birthday.  We were seated next to a friendly (and very drunk) couple who kept telling us how they came "all the way from 70th Street" because the food was so good.  Considering that Minton's is only on 118th Street, I found their choice of words very interesting.  Since when is less than 3 miles a trek? Is 15 or 20 minutes in a chauffeured car really such a journey? 

The couple's comment, and my reaction to it, reminded me of a photo of Maison Harlem that I recently saw on the restaurant's Facebook page. The text that accompanied the photographs advertised the restaurant as a "fun destination place."  Maison Harlem is plenty of fun, but the word destination implies a special trip or an adventure.  Clearly this catch line wasn't aimed at me or any of my friends who live in the neighborhood. Are we not the intended audience for such advertisement?  If not, are we the intended patron?

 I think that we can agree that Harlem is not remote in terms of geography.  Any person who has ever ridden the A train between 125th and 59th Street knows how closely connected we are in terms of space.  However, anyone who has ever ridden the A train and witnessed the look of panic on the face of a passenger who has just realized they were on an express train rather than a local ("next stop 125th Street!) recognizes that the distance is about perceptions of race and cultural difference.

Talking and writing about race is difficult, and for some, beside the point.   According to a recent New York Post article on The Cecil, "It’s easy to lose sight that what we have here is a nice new place to eat, not a cause for racial and socioeconomic disquisitions." However, when writers use language that depicts Harlem as foreign and exotic, by extension black and Latino Harlemites are being  portrayed as slightly less than American.  This is something that cannot be ignored, regardless of how good the food is.

I remember reading Toni Morrison talking about reading certain books and knowing that they were not written with her in mind because they explained things that would not have to been explained to a black woman.  Much of the writing about the Harlem restaurant scene is clearly not written with me in mind; many of these articles and posts seem like an underground railroad of sorts designed to let whites know what locations are safe to visit in Harlem.

Restaurants are businesses.  I understand that it makes sense to advertise to those who have money and are willing to spend it. However, we must change the perception that whites are the only ones in New York who can do that.

Photo: The New York Post