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The store was located in a small strip mall, so there was no security. It's quite possible the clerk was there by himself. If he had abandoned the store, the other customers would have become furious, and he would have been fired.
If all the customers had decided to exit the store, it would have left the clerk alone with that woman. From my own experience, that's when a situation can escalate. If she would have had a gun and decided to take it to the next level, he would have had no way of defending himself.
It wouldn't have helped him to call the police anyway. Many of them hold the same view as that woman, only they don't always call them Mexicans. They sometimes refer to them as "bad elements" and "suspects." People don't complain when the police profile and stereotype them in this manner. Their excuse is "better safe than sorry." Besides, many of them believe Mexicans are "stealing" our jobs and would like to see that clerk fired.
I realize these people have the freedom of speech to call them "bad elements" and a right to their opinion, but of what purpose does such behavior serve? It entitles them to use them as scapegoats and believe they can do anything they want to them.
I believe this bigotry and so-called entitlement gave those students at Rutgers University the go-ahead to invade the space of their homosexual roommate. They knew it was wrong, but they felt entitled to secretly film his romantic encounter and feed it live on the web - humiliating the young man into suicide.
What if the clerk was having a bad day too and couldn't take the humiliation any longer? How would people defend this woman's viewpoints and right to free speech? What would they say about the clerk, and what would they say to the clerk's family?
How should people like this clerk and student at Rutgers identify and avoid bigoted people who know how to hide behind a "delightful and respectful" appearance and have the support of the local community? For safety sake, should these children avoid working, going to school, or being out in public for the rest of their lives? How would this be considered "raising" a child? Why would the quality of life for the bigot be more important than the quality of life for the child?
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