the racist caricatures<\/a> historically used to degrade Black people,\u201d said Broady, who is black.<\/p>\nHarlem residents were mixed in their opinions about the cutout \u2013 which was taken down when The Post visited the nabe on Sunday afternoon. Tomas E. Gaston for NY Post<\/p>\n
But it exploded when TikToker \u201cAnastazia X\u201d visited the bagel joint \u2014 and declared the sign a \u201cblackface bagel\u201d while decrying it as \u201cproblematic.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not funny,\u201d the TikToker \u2014 who has 4,000 followers \u2014 said in a Saturday video, adding that other art in the shop \u201cwas a little askew.\u201d<\/p>\n
Anastasia X also proclaimed the shop was \u201cwhite owned\u201d while flashing a photo of Martinez, and insisted she\u2019d been \u201cleft on read\u201d when she sent him a message criticizing the mascot.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a kind email, it was a curious email, but it got no response,\u201d she said \u2014 explaining she confronted the store manager during her visit instead.<\/p>\n
\u201cI asked if anyone had complained about the bagels \u2026 and had the complaint been delivered to the owner,\u201d she said.\u201dThe answer to those questions were \u2018Yes,\u2019 there have been complaints. \u2018Yes,\u2019 the owners are aware of the complaints. But \u2018No,\u2019 nothing has been done. Interesting.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not blackface,\u201d Genisha Metcalf, 39, firmly told The Post.\u00a0 Sidney Blasco\/NY Post<\/p>\n
People began making phone calls threatening Bo\u2019s Bagels employees after the controversy, owner Andrew Martinez said. Tomas E. Gaston for NY Post<\/p>\n
Despite those hot and fresh takes, Harlem residents were mixed in their opinions about the cutout \u2013 with some brushing off the criticism.<\/p>\n
One longtime 43-year-old resident born and raised in the historical black nabe said he couldn\u2019t ignore the bagel\u2019s \u201cstereotypical imagery.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe gold chains, whatever else was on it, that\u2019s just like a caricature they used to show back in the olden times\u2026but this time it just happens to be on a bagel,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Genisha Metcalf, 39, poked a hole in critics\u2019 claims, saying it went \u201ctoo far \u201d to call the sign \u201cracist.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not blackface,\u201d Metcalf firmly told The Post.<\/p>\n
While influencer Anastazia X said she hoped a civil \u201cpublic conversation\u201d would take place over the bagel, what instead followed was the ceaseless harassment of Bo\u2019s Bagels\u2019 staff, according to owner Martinez.\u00a0<\/p>\n
People began making phone calls threatening the business\u2019 employees, the lifelong New Yorker claimed, while other influencers came in to make harassing videos.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve reached out to my black employees and said, \u2018You need to leave there because your owners hate you,\u2019 and that\u2019s just not true,\u201d Martinez said.<\/p>\n
The bagel mascot was designed by Harlem-based artist Tom Sanford, whose life-sized cutouts of the New York Knicks were displayed in City Hall during the team\u2019s legendary run and resulting championship win in June.\u00a0 Tom Sanford<\/p>\n
Martinez \u2013 who said he offered to respond to Anastazia\u2019s email but was ignored \u2013 has been floored by the controversy.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is actually almost weird to us because Harlemites love us. They know what we do. We donate to schools. We give food away to the homeless shelters,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Anastasia X also seemed surprised by people\u2019s reactions \u2014 telling The Post she never intended for her video to blow up as it did.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry that employees and the owner have been harassed as a result of the video,\u201d she said. \u201cThat was not my intention and I don\u2019t condone or support any behavior of that kind.\u201d<\/p>\n
When reached for comment, artist Tom Sanford defended the art work, saying he wanted \u201cnothing more than to celebrate that culture.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPersonally, I do not see uptown streetwear culture in a negative light at all,\u201d Sanford said in an emailed statement.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cTo me, these items represent overwhelmingly positive cultural contributions that came from the streets of my neighborhood and crossed over into the mainstream.\u201d<\/p>\n
Additional reporting by Katherine Donlevy<\/p>\n
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