Hey, Hooters Girls! Let us start this story by reiterating (just in case there's any doubt) that we love you and your ... Ahem. Wings! And don't worry. We're not insulted by the outfit. Those shorts are awesome! If we could pull 'em off, we'd be wearing them, too!
But some mom in Clearwater, Fla., has got it all twisted. She says that you must've been “the bad kids.”
Okay, that's not exactly what she said. But this is:
“It's just the wrong message,” said Ashley Dominicci, 32, a paralegal whose son is a sixth-grader. “I feel like we're telling them (the students) that you're the bad kids, and this is all you'll be in life. I'm not knocking waitresses. They're very hard-working. My point is, these kids should have higher goals.”
The mom also brought up that LA school that let Sasha Grey read to first and third graders, as if the two are somehow connected and both are rotting our kids' brains.
When the school was deciding who to ask to come talk to the kids for the Great American Teach-In, their media specialist mentioned that she had two daughters working at Hooters along with a bunch of their friends to help pay for their college tuition. So the school gave Hooters' corporate office a call and asked them to send over one of their employees to talk to the kids about her job.
“We thought it was a great idea,” said Leah Ramker, Tampa Bay marketing director for Hooters Management Corp. “Anyone can be inspiring, no matter what their job is.”
Here, here.
The school's principal gave no comment to the media, but don't worry! She did defend the decision of the coordinator of the event in an email to the single complaining mother.
“Working as a waiter or waitress in order to achieve higher goals should be commended,” wrote Stephanie Bessette, the school's prinicipal.
And what of the Hooters waitress? What's she got to say about all this? Brittany Morgan, 23 says she understands and respects the mother's opinion, but she's “confident there was nothing wrong with my presentation.”
“Most of us (Hooters waitresses) are going to school. We're aspiring to do other things in life. This isn't our career.”
We're sure there wasn't anything wrong with her presentation either. The girl wore sweats and a sweater for Pete's sake! And so what if Hooters was their career? If you're enjoying life while trying to make a living and supporting yourself, what difference does your occupation make?
Sorry, Mom. We're gonna have to take away some of your cool points. There's nothing wrong with waitressing. No matter what the uniform.