Thread by @robicellis

Right now I’m at a friend’s funeral. He was 22 and died of kidney disease. He was skipping dialysis because he was an hourly food service worker and couldn’t afford to lose any pay. I’m sitting here in the lobby, thinking about the people getting rich off the #ChickenSandwich.

The enormity of these things really doesn’t hit you until you see a brilliant, funny, caring and very much loved 22 year old man lying in a his casket.

This country was not built to value young black men and women. It’s 2019, and we are still not doing enough. It’s not just police brutality, it’s not just gang violence or illegal guns. It’s fucking America.

Rest in power, James. You are still loved.

#BlackLivesMatter

This was James. The people who serve you coffee and sandwiches, the people who barely get by because a living wage “isn’t in the best interest of shareholders”, the people who so many believe don’t deserve to be paid fairly: they are people. They are loved. They deserve better.

I’d be remiss to point out that James passed 13 days ago, yet his funeral is today. The family has had to rally together donations to pay for the funeral. This is the reality of those who work hourly jobs on Baltimore’s east side.

We just got out of the service and I’ve been told there’s been a GoFundMe established by his coworkers at Starbucks. I’m taking the $3.99 I was going to spend on the chicken sandwich and send it here.

gofundme.com/f/dignity-fund…

I’ve got a hell of a lot to think about after this.

Hey! So I am completely overwhelmed by the response to this tweet. It makes me happy that James is still able to touch so many people which, according to Twitter, is now in the hundreds of thousands. I’m still doing a lot of heavy thinking, & I hope you all are as well.

One thing I need to clarify — as there seems to be some confusion in my mentions — is that James DID have healthcare. Starbucks is one of the few fast casual concepts who tries to care for their workers. The problem is the security of hourly food service work.

I think we all know how the cost of living has continued to skyrocket, while wages aren’t keeping up. When you work hourly, you can’t afford to cut a few hours off your schedule. Losing even a day can make a huge difference, especially if you have dependents.

James was worried about money. He was worried that if he took time off he’d be replaced, because that’s a legitimate fear all hourly workers live with. He thought if he took a day off for dialysis, he’d continue to have less hours on every weekly schedule.

Someone sent me this article a few days ago and it broke my heart. I know a few families in Baltimore who live like this, and none of them deserve it. If anything, just read the first few paragraphs.

theguardian.com/us-news/2017/a…

And for the people in my mentions saying a 27 year old man should never had that job in the first place because “they’re meant for young kids who are going to school”, I pray that reading your own words helps you see the monster that you’ve become.

When I was tweeting from James’ funeral two days ago, his family and Starbucks coworkers had barely raised $2000 to pay for the service. This is what their GoFundMe looks like now, ALL from the kindness of total strangers. We are all beside ourselves.

I spoke to some of his coworkers, and they said they are so used to seeing people at their worst. If you’ve ever gone to any Starbucks and paid attention to the way customers treat baristas, you’ll completely understand. They said their faith in humanity as been renewed.

None of us expected total strangers to step up for James. When the family was informed, some of them burst into tears. They were so scared about how to cover all the bills attached not only to the funeral but to his passing as a whole, bc dying in America is EXPENSIVE.

Personally I’m beyond words. Strangers took money out of their pockets to help total strangers during their worst moments. Thousands of people have shared James’ story. He keeps changing hearts and lives. Thank you all for giving his family a spot of beauty amidst a nightmare.