Statement from Laid-Off and Former Staff of Hungry Pigeon
In light of some recent instagram posts made by Chef/Owner of Hungry Pigeon, Scott Schroeder, we as laid-off staff feel it is our responsibility to respond to his racist and domineering social media presence. We wish to publicly denounce his anti-black rhetoric as well as his recent lashing out at former employees who have directed legitimate criticism at his business practices and his behavior on social media.
In a string of instagram posts on Sunday May 31, Scott called into question the mass response to both the recent murder of George Floyd and the larger issue of police terrorism in this country. He then went on to bizarrely stereotype the black community, saying, “Thank you Black America. You had me at hip hop and fried chicken.” Scott’s respectability politics and his effort to delegitimize direct action in the wake of yet another police murder of a black man are inappropriate and smack of white chauvinism. The post is made even more insidious given that Scott turns a profit selling fried chicken to his wealthy patrons in Queens Village, all while reducing the black community to a mere stereotype.
In addition, Scott has recently taken to using his large platform on instagram to publicly embarrass and pick on former staff members, before quickly blocking them to avoid accountability and play the victim. His recent online harassment has gone so far as to include a former staff member’s family and personal details about their life. All of this on display for his many thousands of followers. As currently laid-off staff, we believe it is unacceptable for our boss and the owner of the restaurant to engage with former staff members in this manner, but given his bullyish behavior in the workplace, it unfortunately does not come as a surprise. It is discouraging to see that while Scott and his business partner, Pat O’Malley, have offered virtually nothing in the way of communication or support to their out-of-work employees, Scott seems to have plenty of time to disparage protesters and bad-mouth former employees.
Scott’s recent attempt to evade accountability by trying to explain away his racism before deleting his instagram account altogether is obviously insufficient. His views do not represent those of the staff of Hungry Pigeon and we call on him to publicly apologize for his racist comments and his bullying as well as donate to the Philly Bail Fund and Black Lives Matter Philadelphia. While Scott criticizes protesters online, several former members of staff and currently laid-off employees have been in the streets demanding justice. We say unequivocally, Black Lives Matter! We demand justice for George Floyd and all colonized people who have died at the hands of the US police state!
Signed,
Several laid-off and former staff members of Hungry Pigeon
