> it doesn't make sense to allocate 15-20% of the payment to something that is only like 1% of the value you're receiving
Not quite true. A good server not only takes your order and brings your food, but they also act as quality assurance on your behalf, which provides a lot more than 1% of the value you are receiving. Furthermore, despite the misinformation in the article, most restaurants do under the table tip pooling among employees.
So, the author set out to prove how unfair the justice system is between races, and to some extent he did show that. But, didn't his experience also show that a white person was treated just as by the courts as any other person? Am I missing the point of this article?