Earlier this week, Oprah Winfrey revealed that she, too, was victim of subtle racism during an interview with Entertainment Tonight. She told a story that while in Zurich, Switzerland, she went into a store and asked to see a handbag on the shelf, but was refused:
"I go into a store and I say to the woman, 'Excuse me, may I see the bag right above your head?' and she says to me, 'No. It's too expensive.'"
When Winfrey insisted, the shop assistant allegedly replied: "No, no you don't want to see that one, you want to see this one because that one will cost too much. You will not be able to afford that."
The star said she left the shop calmly without arguing, but that the experience was proof that racism continues to be a problem
Oprah, whose net worth is $2.8 billion, could've bought the entire store, of course, but she didn't name the store or the handbag in the interview. Nonetheless, the ensuing media storm revealed that the store was the Trois Pommes and the handbag as a version of "Jennifer" bag by designer Tom Ford. The price of the bag? A cool $38,000.
The store's owner was put on the defensive, of course, and claimed that it was not racism - rather, a "misunderstanding" by the salesperson, and refused to dismiss the employee. Others, however, disagreed. The Zurich tourism board, realizing that the event had been a complete PR nightmare, immediately apologized and said that it was "never happy when our guests' feelings are hurt."
We can't help but notice: $38,000 FOR A HANDBAG? What was it made of? SOLID GOLD? Maybe it came with a car.