One deli owner in California has sparked an outcry for recently offering a free side dish to customers who said “Send her back” while ordering, apparently referencing the controversial chant that emerged at a North Carolina rally for President Donald Trump last week.
Last week, John Canesa, the owner of Canesa’s Brooklyn Heros in Clayton, shared a divisive status on his personal Facebook page explaining the special, SF Gate reports.
“Meatballs made with beef today in case we offend any of you overly sensitive pork haters!! Free side when you say ‘send her back,’” the man allegedly wrote, according to screenshots of the message captured and later shared to the social media site by Clayton Mayor Tuija Catalano.
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), other Democrats and various commentators have blasted the president after the crowd at the Greenville “Make America Great Again” rally broke out in a striking chant of “Send her back” after the president criticized Omar and the three other progressive Democrats known collectively as “the Squad.”
At the White House the next day, Trump said he “disagreed” with the chant and was “not happy with it.” He said he “started speaking very quickly” to halt the chant.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the country, the damage would soon prove to be done for Canesa’s deli.
According to the Los Angeles Times, the deli owner’s Facebook post has “sharply divided” the small town with a population of roughly 12,000.
Catalano too has since blasted Canesa’s “hateful” language.
“I am very saddened to have seen a FB post by the owner of local deli this morning. We all have rights to our own political, religious and other opinions. We all have a right to post about them too,” the politician wrote on Facebook last Friday.
“However, there is no place in our community for hatred and bigotry. When hateful comments are being promoted as part of a local business, they reflect on our community’s reputation. As an elected official, who is also a woman and foreign-born, I personally find a comment about sending anyone back over their political opinions unacceptable.”
Commenters quickly flooded the deli’s Yelp and Facebook pages with negative reviews and messages, Yahoo Lifestyle reports. At present, it appears that the small deli’s Yelp page has blocked the additional posting of more reviews.
In the days since, Canesa has reportedly been “dealing with threats” following the “Send her back” special, according to SF Gate. The deli owner’s personal Facebook page has also evidently been made private or deleted.
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