"The manager verbally insulted [them] with demeaning remarks and racial slurs," reported The Amherst Student. According to the police reports, "As they were leaving the [waiter] began swearing at them calling them 'you motherfuckers,' 'you sons of bitches' and 'you black bitches." The two students both reported being horrified that such a conspicous act of racism could have occurred, and thus decided to file a report with the town police.
The incident arose after Luc and Boone decided not to leave a tip after the waiter had forced them to give the condiments on their table to a neighboring one. The waiter became livid when the students refused to pay the service charge and, according to The Student, Boone claimed, "The waiter raised his voice and his body language was rude. His arms were flailing, causing the other patrons to stare at us. The waiter yelled that that spices were a privilege and not a right. I felt extremely insulted."
The manager then became involved in the dispute by attempting to add charges on the bill for the glasses of water which the students had consumed. The students refused to pay the extra charge and were consequently kicked out of the restaurant and told never to return.
According to The Student, "The waiter refused to comment on the incident, saying only that it dealt with the customers' refusal to pay the service charge."
Luc '02 expressed her dismay in The Student, "It is ironic that the waiter, who was Indian, would act so insensitively. He's a minority also, doesn't he know?"
In response to the incident, the Black Students Union Chair Marlon Cush '05 issued a statement: "With a community like Amherst, one isn't allowed to be overtly racist; however, given the right stimuli and a certain level of comfort, racism will rise to the top as it did in this case."