LINDA:
Can I help you?
ARIANA:
(Smiles)
No thanks, just looking.
LINDA:
(Slowly)
You sure you can afford anything in here?
ARIANA:
(Beat. Looks at her.)
Excuse me?
LINDA:
I’m just saying—this isn’t the kind of store for… hanging out. We’ve had issues before.
ARIANA:
Issues? Or assumptions?
LINDA:
Look, don’t take it personally. I just know how these things go. You people come in, cause trouble, and walk out without paying.
(Silence. Ariana processes what she just heard.)
ARIANA:
You don’t know me. You don’t know anything about me.
LINDA:
I know what I see.
ARIANA:
What you see is a girl with brown skin, and that’s all you needed to decide who I am.
LINDA:
I have every right to protect this store.
ARIANA:
And I have every right to shop in it without being harassed. You think racism always screams? Sometimes it whispers… like what you just said.
(A STORE EMPLOYEE, mid-20s, overhears and walks over.)
EMPLOYEE:
Everything okay here?
ARIANA:
Not really. She just accused me of stealing—without saying it outright.
LINDA:
I was just being cautious!
EMPLOYEE:
(To Linda)
Then you can be cautious somewhere else. We don’t tolerate discrimination here.
(Linda looks stunned. She huffs, clutches her bag, and storms out. The employee turns to Ariana.)
EMPLOYEE:
I’m really sorry. You’re welcome here any time.
ARIANA:
(Smiles faintly)
Thanks. Some people need to learn that respect isn’t a luxury item.
