Chipotle writers' lineup lacks Mexican, Mexican-American, or Latin American authors
By now, we鈥檝e heard about fast food chain Chipotle鈥檚 campaign to print short stories from great literary figures on its cups. Read Toni Morrison with your taco or Malcolm Gladwell with your burrito 鈥� brilliant, right?
Except for one thing. The company, whose full name is Chipotle Mexican Grill, didn鈥檛 include a single Mexican, Mexican-American or Latin American writer in its lineup.
Oops.
As we learned in an earlier Monitor post聽titled 鈥淟ooking for a good read? Try a Chipotle bag,鈥� writer Jonathan Safran Foer dreamed up the 鈥淐ultivating Thought鈥� campaign with Chipotle, in which he chose 10 authors, including Sarah Silverman and George Saunders, whose short stories would appear on Chipotle cups and bags.
鈥淚 said, 鈥榊ou know you have all of these surfaces in your restaurants, the cups, the bags, why don鈥檛 you just give something to people?'鈥澛燜oer said in a statement on the聽聽for the program. 鈥淣ot as any kind of marketing tool, not with any particular message, but just something thoughtful.鈥�
Apparently not thoughtful enough, according to the Latino literati, who perhaps see this as more proof of the literary world鈥檚 lack of diversity聽and have stirred up a backlash.聽
Writer Gustavo Arellano offered his two cents in the : 鈥淚n Foer's world, Latino authors simply don't exist and simply don't appeal to his Chipotle worldview of what the chain is advertising as 鈥楥ultivating Thought鈥� 鈥� the only Mexican cultivation the two approve for their beloved burritos is the tomatoes harvested by Florida pickers.鈥澛�
The omission has even inspired a page 鈥淐ultivating Invisibility: Chipotle鈥檚 Missing Mexicans." The page, created by Lisa Alvarez and Alex Espinoza to collect criticism and chastise Chipotle, parodies Chipotle鈥檚 campaign with a play on its tag line reading, 鈥淐ultivating Thought, Just Not Well-Thought-Out: Our mainly East Coast white guy author series.鈥�
鈥淗ere鈥檚 the thing. I exist. I am full of stories. Just ask me, and I鈥檒l tell you. But you have to ask,鈥� Espinoza wrote on the page. 鈥淒on鈥檛 ignore me. Don鈥檛 eat my food and think you know me.鈥�
That鈥檚 not all. Berkeley Mexican fast-food restaurant Flacos is handing out blank cups and pens so customers can write their own stories, according to the 鈥� Jacket Copy.
The contributions at Flacos illustrate the anger some Latinos have felt at being left out.
鈥淎t the frozen food section at Ralph鈥檚 supermarket, the 鈥楲atino Style Vegetables鈥� are cut up all small,鈥� Michele Serros, the author of the book 鈥淐hicana Falsa,鈥� wrote on her cup. 鈥淟ike little minds? Little significance? The 鈥楳alibu Style Vegetables鈥� are cut big and grand. The cauliflower, which is WHITE, is the BIGGEST veggie in the picture!鈥�
The outrage displayed may surprise some, but critics of Chipotle鈥檚 campaign may see this as further proof of a sentiment expressed by minority writers in days and months past 鈥� that of a diversity problem in the literary world.
What do you think: Was Chipotle鈥檚 oversight a gross injustice or a simple omission to which critics are overreacting?
Husna Haq is a Monitor correspondent.
