After Criticism Waned, a Controversial Philly Steak Shop Expands
'Chink's Steaks' is set to open in a new, more prominent area just in time for the start of the Major League Baseball season.
"Chink's Steaks" is growing.
Four years after Asian Pacific American groups launched a campaign to urge the owner of the Philadelphia steak shop to change its racist name, "Chink's" is still "Chink's." The only difference is that now another "Chink's Steaks" is opening a new location later this month.
Everything from the original Wissinoming eatery will be available at the new take-out only location at 901 S. Columbus Boulevard just in time for the first pitch of the Philadelphia Phillies' season opener.
APA groups are not amused.
"It's like giving Asian Americans the finger," said Hiro Nishikawa, a Greater Philadelphia resident and former JACL EDC district governor. "It makes me sick."
In 2004 local APA and civil rights groups including the JACL, the Organizations of Chinese Americans (OCA), the Asian American Bar Association of Delaware Valley and the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) took on "Chink's Steaks" owner Joseph Groh in an unsuccessful name change battle.
The clash of civil rights groups and a steak shop owner stole media headlines and elicited feelings of outrage both over the offensive nature of the steak shop's name and what some called a politically correct assault on a private business.
But after all the dust settled, the controversial name remained. Now a few of the same APA groups are talking about starting up a new campaign to fight the expansion of "Chink's Steaks."
This time the stakes are higher, said Philadelphia ADL Regional Director Barry Morrison "because the battle was lost once already."
'A lot of our idealism and optimism died out.'
There are many reasons why the name change campaign failed four years ago, especially when you ask those who were involved. Most blame Groh for his refusal to budge, while others say it was the lack of sustained pressure that literally let the "Chink's Steaks" owner off the hook.
"My sense then was that the effort failed because there was not a strong enough campaign from local Chinese Americans," said Morrison.
Back then the grassroots movement was buoyed by a coalition of groups including the Persons for the Elimination of Racially Insensitive Language (PERIL) and Susannah Park, a West Philadelphia resident and campaign spokesperson. Their efforts became national news that eventually lead to a meeting with Groh mediated by the Philadelphia Human Relations Commission (HRC).
Park, now 25, was disappointed after that meeting.
"He felt like I was trying to force him to change the name. I was just trying to make him see my point of view as an Asian American," she said.
The original "Chink's Steaks" on 6030 Torresdale Avenue has been a popular cheesesteak neighborhood destination since 1949 when its founder Samuel Sherman began slinging steaks onto bread. The place is named after Sherman's lifelong nickname - "Chink," reportedly because he had slanted eyes. Sherman was not of Asian descent. When Groh bought the eatery from Sherman's widow in 1999, he kept everything the same.
During the height of the campaign, Park hoped that all parties could come to an amicable agreement without resorting to legal action. But when talks broke down, she said members of the grassroots movement simply became preoccupied with other engagements and moved on.
"I'm disappointed our efforts didn't pan out the way we had hoped," said Tsiwen Law, general counsel of the Greater Philadelphia OCA. He said it was Park who never stepped forward to file an official complaint with the HRC.
"For whatever reason I don't know," he said. If Park had filed a complaint, Law said the HRC - which enforces civil rights laws and mediates inter-group disputes - would have held fact-finding hearings to see if customers were turned away from the steak shop by the offensive name.
In 2006, the HRC filed a discrimination complaint against Geno's Steaks, the popular South Philly eatery that gained notoriety when its owner Joseph Vento posted a sign telling customers, "This is America: When Ordering 'Speak English.'" The hearings are ongoing.
Park said there was a lot going on behind the scenes of the 2004 campaign. She was both maligned and lauded in the media, by other residents and even within the APA community.
"Interestingly, other Asian American individuals and activists didn't take our campaign so seriously. I think they thought there were other more important issues. I personally think the issue is a great starting pointing for dialogue into other issues," said Park, who added that by the end "a lot of our idealism and optimism died out."
New Location, New Battle
Some of the original APA groups are in the preliminary stages of possibly launching another campaign against "Chink's Steaks."
This time, they have more experience.
"We have to have a broad-base educational campaign," said Law. "Last time, there were people who dismissed the campaign as being silly. Then there were questions about whether the campaign actually gave the steak shop additional business. It's a balancing act."
Because "Chink's Steaks" is a neighborhood eatery, people reacted like it was an attack on their neighborhood, which it wasn't, added Law. It was an attack on the use of the racially offensive word.
The steak shop promotes itself as part of a throwback to the 1950s, an era when using a racial slur for a nickname and a trade name was acceptable, said Paul Uyehara, a Philadelphia JACL board member.
"Well, this isn't the 1950s and there is no justification for the toleration of throwback racism. We're not going back to Jim Crow. We're not going to repeal the Civil Rights Act of 1964. We don't think Mrs. Cleaver's housewife in pearls [image] is something to strive for. We don't want lead in our gas or paint, so why should we tolerate morons who think racial slurs are neat?" he added.
Groh did not respond to the Pacific Citizen's requests for comment.
More troubling is the prominent location of the new "Chink's Steak" on South Columbus Boulevard. The street bordering the Delaware River attracts a lot of residents and visitors to its shopping centers and big box retailers, said Gayle Isa, executive director of the Philadelphia Asian Arts Initiative.
The chances of it being ignored are slim, said Morrison.
"Obviously, it's disappointing that despite the community protest, the business owner would open up another place choosing the same name," said Isa.
Its new address also puts "Chink's Steaks" just over a mile away from Geno's, making the area an epicenter for controversial steak shops.
In 2004, Groh argued that changing the name would affect his business. The steak shop has bore the same name for over 50 years and changing it could make customers assume that it was under different ownership.
But critics say in the new site, there is no existing clientele so the same theory would not hold up.
"He's a businessman. He's trying to make money the best he can, but you would think in this multicultural world it would be better not to offend the population," said Nick Shenoy, executive director of the Asian American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Philadelphia.
"I can't say I'm surprised that there is another one opening up. I guess I'll really know what I feel once it opens," said Park, who added that her busy work and school schedule prevents her from spearheading another campaign, but she would support it if someone else takes the lead.
If there is another campaign, Law said they need to hit "Chink's Steaks" in the pocketbook by targeting their customers.
"This time the message needs to be louder, clearer and more vigorous," said Morrison.
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