Let me start this off with I like to joke that my skin is so white that it glows in the dark. I used to work at a jewelry store at the airport. One of the things about working retail at an airport is that you meet a lot of different kinds of people, some of them great, some of them awful. Here’s my witness of new racism. I was at work with my coworker, lets call her Angelica and she’s black. So and I are working and this woman walks in, and Angelica says “hello” the woman ignores her. Angelica asks “how are you today?” and the woman looks up, sees me, assumes that I was talking to her and smiles. At this point customers start filling in on our store, and the woman goes and looks at the earring spinner. I was helping another customer, not paying attention to what’s going on elsewhere, when the woman walks up to me and says ” I want this” and was kind enough to hand me the earrings she wanted. I get the earrings for her and ring her out. After the store is empty of customers, Angelica turns to me and says ” did you see that woman?” I said ” yea what was that about? I thought you were helping her”, she then fills me in on what was going on. Turns out that Angelica was standing no more than a few feet away from this woman asking her “can I help you find anything?” as this woman ignores her completely. I remember asking Angelica, ” wow, but why? Was your help not good enough for her??” she then says”I don’t know, but I think she was racist”. I almost said “that’s not racism, right?” but then I realized that by seeking out the white girl for whatever reason that, that woman would have used, when the black girl was actively doing her job, and blantaly ignoring her was the new and improved racism.
Unruly Bodies 
It’s a real bummer that the retail industry has to deal with such high intolerance in the work environment. On the other hand, I appreciate your story because it shines a light on how people perceive others and how the laboring body can be ignored, regardless of a lack of experience with the individual.
Oh, trust me its not new or improved, actually. I work a job where people come to the counter to request help. I’m a Black woman who is often sitting with a White co-worker, and I do get White people who walk up to the counter and completely ignore me, even when they can see that I’m free, and my co-worker is busy. They will stand there and wait for my co-worker to finish whatever they’re doing, rather than speak to me, Even if I’m actively offering assistance.
Recently, I had an elderly White woman come in and head straight for my White co-worker, to ask for info on how she can volunteer for the Trump campaign. I remember feeling relieved that she didn’t ask me, (and knowing why she didnt) although I still would’ve aided and abetted her foolishness just the same as my co-worker did because that’s my job.
I’ve been doing this job for some twenty years. That’s how I know such silliness isn’t new or improved. Its the same old foolishness it always was.