Florida political influencer and former NYPD cop John Cardillo was asked to leave a Fort Lauderdale restaurant Sunday after an altercation with a pro-Palestinian employee.
In a tweet, Cardillo said he was dining at the Voodoo Bayou Cajun eatery when things get spicy.
Former police officer and prominent supporter of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said two waitresses started cheering as a truck drove by carrying people waving Palestinian flags.
“When I told them it was disgusting and asked the manager, manager John to come out, asked me to leave, and sided with the sympathizers of terrorism,” he wrote, along with a photo of a passing vehicle.
Cardillo — who said the manager threatened to call the police if she didn’t leave — then posted the restaurant’s phone number.
Cardillo said he was asked to leave the Fort Lauderdale restaurant.Instagram/@johncardillo
Some respondents called for a boycott and praised Cardillo’s actions.
“John Cardillo is a hero,” wrote one. “He is not Jewish. He is sensible and polite and has a brain.”
Others began posting negative comments on the restaurant’s social media pages, asserting that it supports violence and mistreats dissenting customers.
Some posters argued that the flag was not Hamas-specific and that the staff had the right to support the Palestinians.
Cardillo posted a photo of a person in a truck waving a Palestinian flag.Twitter/@johncardillo
The controversy prompted the head of the restaurant’s owner group, True Grit Hospitality, to address the situation on social media.
Curtis Peery wrote that “there were several vehicles driving by flying several Hamas flags.”
“One of our guests accused one of our employees of waving at a protester driving by,” he continued. “The manager on duty (who is Jewish himself) tried to infiltrate [sic] situation by saying we are not involved in politics. The manager on duty asked the guest to leave.”
Peery then clarified the restaurant’s official position on Hamas, insisting that its efforts are more focused on po’ boys than politics.
Cardillo tweeted about his experience.Twitter/@johncardillo
“As the owner of Voodoo Bayou, I assure you that we ABSOLUTELY DO NOT SUPPORT HAMAS,” he wrote. “We pride ourselves on being a place where you can go to escape the political discourse.”
In a separate defense, Peery claimed an Israeli flag was flying from another car and it was not clear which banner the attendant was responding to.
Cardillo denied that version of events in a separate tweet.
“There is no such truck,” he wrote, stated that he then spoke to Peery and insists that his staff lied to him about the dispute.
“We are conducting a full investigation into the incident,” Peery said.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
