Pirate's Cove

They’re referring to the actions of BLM as “mafia like”. That would make them illegal. This was plainly extortion

Cuban business owner in Louisville decries BLM protesters’ demands as ‘mafia tactics’

Fernando Martinez, a business owner in downtown Louisville, took part in a protest Sunday with fellow members of the Cuban community and expressed solidarity with Black Lives Matter protesters after he called their recent demands in the city “mafia tactics.”

The Louisville Courier-Journal reported that business owners in the area received letters from protesters that included a list of demands to improve diversity in the community and in the workplace. The paper cited a press release that said the letter was delivered by protesters who told Martinez to put it on his front door so “your business is not f***ed with.”

The paper reported that Martinez, who is a partner of the Ole Restaurant Group and came to the U.S. on a raft at 18, was not the only business owner who received the letter and he took to Facebook to write, “There comes a time in life that you have to make a stand and you have to really prove your convictions and what you believe in. All good people need to denounce this. How can you justified (sic) injustice with more injustice?”

The paper reported that some of the demands laid out in the letter included a minimum of 23 percent of the staff being Black and buying at least 23 percent of their goods from Black-owned retailers, to name a few.

The letter further demanded that the employees receive diversity training and display a visible sign that increases awareness and shows support for the reparations movement. Martinez is himself black. That Louisville Courier-Journal link reports

Phelix Crittenden, an activist who works with Black Lives Matter Louisville, said the demands and related “NuLu social justice health and wellness ratings” were not meant to be a threat but were instead intended to start a conversation with owners about how their businesses can better reflect and support Black people.

Right, right, not a threat, just a conversation. And it would be a real shame if something happened without the conversation, right? The letter was distributed on July 24th, and

The restaurant remained closed the next two days because “management and staff were concerned about safety,” according to the release. “30+ staff members (mostly immigrants) were unable to earn a paycheck.”

Nice people in BLM, eh?

At the root of the protesters’ demands is the request that business owners acknowledge the harm brought on Black residents when they were displaced from NuLu and the adjoining Phoenix Hill neighborhood during the demolition of the Clarksdale housing project in the early 2000s.

Something which Martinez and the other business owners had nothing to do with. And was a place of drugs and violence, which did not fit in with the economic expansion of Louisville.

At La Bodeguita De Mima on E. Market St, where members of Louisville’s Cuban community are gathering to show support for owner Fernando Martinez. He said he was threatened by BLM protesters, who sent letters to business owners in NuLu demanding to improve diversity in the area. pic.twitter.com/sFJR5c0KNM

— David J. Kim (@_DavidJKim) August 2, 2020