Are supermarket ethnic food aisles racist?

[Jenise]

From eater.com:

In many supermarkets, tortillas, soy sauce, and other products connected to Asian and Latin American countries are often still relegated to the “ethnic” food aisle — a place that David Chang recently called “the last bastion of racism that you can see in full daylight in retail America” on his podcast.

To some shoppers and supermarket owners, grouping these items together makes sense because it caters to convenience, and can even help maximize the sales of those products, according to a new Washington Post report about the ethnic food aisle. But to some children of immigrants, like Chang, the continued existence of the ethnic food aisle is an outdated remnant of “1950s America,” an era when the blatant segregation and marginalization of immigrants and people of color was even more commonplace than it is today (although now, by all accounts, is not a particularly great time for immigrants in the U.S., either).

Chang, in an interview with the Post, called this phenomenon an “invisible ceiling” on some supermarket items:

Italian products that were once marginalized, such as olive oils and vinegars, are now routinely integrated into grocery store aisles, while Chinese, Japanese and Latino foods remain stuck in their own sections. The ongoing segregation of these foods, Chang says, isn’t about acceptance among the mainstream. Asian and Latino cuisines have long been embraced by Americans of every stripe, he says.

Growing up, Chang said, the ethnic food aisle was a reminder that he was different from white America: “We were always going to be different … We were never going to be accepted.” Now that tacos, stir fries, and other dishes that are made with these ethnic food aisle ingredients have become common fixtures in the American diet, Chang argued, it’s time to get rid of the separate aisle.

Racist? I'm almost speechless at the suggestion. Am I being racist by grouping all my Asian liquids together in the pantry?
(I don't think so.) It's all about finding the things I want in one place when I shop and storing the things I use together in the same place. At Fred Meyer where I shopped yesterday, Mexican and Asian aren't in the same aisle, nor is the word Ethnic used anywhere. Wonder if this would pass muster with Mr. Chang, or would putting an end to it require that the chili and sesame oils have to go with the other oils, etc etc etc?

Let's discuss.

[Robin Garr]

Eater?

The Nazis used to put kosher dills on their own shelf, nowhere near the bread & butter chips. I think that says it all.

This has been making the rounds on other social media. I'm not sure I would call it 'racist' but it does speak to the lack of integration of these ingredients. It shows that supermarkets view these things as distinct cultural items and do not view them in terms of the food ingredients.

There is a lot of logic behind putting all oils together, all packaged sauces together, all noodles together, etc.

[Jenise]

There is a lot of logic behind putting all oils together, all packaged sauces together, all noodles together, etc.

Yes, but there are so many uncommon things that don't have equivalents. The other day at my local Fred Meyer, I discovered jars of a crispy chile condiment for Chinese cooking that I might not have seen if it were spread to other parts of the store. They've been stocking more Asian things and I will make a point of stopping to peruse those while I otherwise breeze past the plain old white bread stuff. I'm almost never in those aisles as I buy no prepared packaged food, sauces or canned food other than tomatoes. So to me it presents more as about specialization, not segregation as implied by Chang's rant.

[Robin Garr]

jars of a crispy chile condiment for Chinese cooking

Lao Gan Ma Spicy Chile Crisp? It's amazing! I could (and do) eat it with a spoon and use it for a lot more than just Chinese.

Yes, but there are so many uncommon things that don't have equivalents. The other day at my local Fred Meyer, I discovered jars of a crispy chile condiment for Chinese cooking that I might not have seen if it were spread to other parts of the store.

Spicy condiments are extremely common! You could very easily put all condiments from around the world in the same section. You could also organize the grocery store by country of origin. But that would lead to some difficult classifications.

So, now we have the simplified distinction between 'domestic' and 'foreign'/exotic, but those categories are very subjective and mean different things to different people. Obviously the people who structure the grocery stores have a different understanding of that distinction from Chang. Doesn't necessarily mean that one of them is correct and the other is wrong. But it does show that at least in grocery stores, these products are not (yet) viewed as part of the American canon.

Which is interesting to track over time. Because these categorizations do not remain stable and food/culture is always shifting.