A liberal Facebook group that encouraged the boycotting of New Jersey businesses whose owners were believed to have supported President-elect Donald Trump shut down following intense backlash from the community.
The now-shuttered group, called Indivisible Blue Two Rivers, created a blacklist of restaurants, delis, liquor stores, children centers and more in Monmouth County it claimed supported “MAGA (Make America Great Again), Fox, or alt-right radio,” rallying its 435 members to avoid the local storefronts.
A separate list highlighted “progressive” businesses in the area residents could patronize instead.
“This was shocking when it was brought to my attention,” said Jason Bauer, owner of Head over Heels in Middletown, a children’s dance studio, NJ.com reported.
“I don’t really engage in social media banter back and forth; it never ends well. But the position of Head Over Heels is we’re non political. We’re a children’s activity center. We’re focused on that.”
Bauer believes he was added to the controversial list due to previous owners supporting Trump, with Eric Taliercio, owner of Taliercio’s Ultimate Gourmet Deli, citing a fun marketing tactic on election day that got him called out.
Taliercio told the outlet he offered customers sporting a blue or red shirt as a reward for voting in the Nov. 5 presidential election — later receiving text messages from friends telling him he had been “blackballed.”
“To be listed in such a negative light, it was definitely disappointment,” Taliercio said.
“I know we’re a food place, and I know politically it doesn’t matter my opinion. I’m just selling food.”
Rob Osborn, owner of Richards Equipment Sales and Services, said he wasn’t surprised to be featured on the list after displaying signs in support of Trump during the 2020 presidential election. While still a Trump supporter, he said his 44-year-old business wasn’t doing anything to promote that.
The people who created the Facebook group, who couldn’t immediately be reached, are now being harassed, Democratic New Jersey State Senator Vin Gopal said in a statement, adding that police reports have since been flied due to mounting online threats.
Gopal, along with Republican Senator Declan O’Scanlon, condemned the divisive group, and those attacking the group admins, for causing “neighbors being pitted against neighbors.”
“We are better than this. I strongly condemn these divisive efforts to damage the livelihoods of Monmouth County small business owners and their employees over political differences,” Republican Senator Declan O’Scanlon said in a Nov. 18 Facebook post.
“Instead of besmirching and demonizing our neighbors, we should instead bridge any divide with communication and an appreciation for each other.”
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