SALEM, Ore. (AP) — It is laborious to overlook Epilogue Kitchen and Cocktails when strolling by way of Salem’s downtown district. Hooked up to their home windows are tons of indicators, a few of them handmade. They learn: “Black Lives Matter” and “No Place For Hate.”
There are giant portraits of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, and in chalk marker the names of dozens of others killed by police in recent times.
There may be additionally a small cardboard signal that claims, “IMMUNIZATIONS REQUIRED FOR SITTING EATING.”
Regardless of that signal, and regardless of having a reservation at a distinct Salem restaurant, Naomi Wolf in late June walked into Epilogue and had a prolonged argument with the workers about their inside eating rule.
“So he got here by, noticed our indicators and determined that meant he wanted to make a scene,” stated co-owner Jonathan Jones.
Wolf was as soon as a well known feminist creator — she wrote the 1990 bestseller “The Magnificence Fantasy” and suggested Invoice Clinton and Al Gore — who in recent times drew consideration on-line for spreading misinformation concerning the coronavirus. Her Twitter account has been deactivated, however she continues to make use of different social media alternate options, together with one geared toward American conservatives referred to as Gettr.
That is the place he posted two movies of his late June encounter with the Epilogue workers. In considered one of them, two staff repeatedly ask Wolf to depart. One factors to the required vaccinations signal and so they ask why Wolf determined to violate that restrict by getting into and arguing with the workers anyway.
“Properly, I imply, to begin with, lots of people within the historical past of this nation have pushed boundaries that means,” Wolf says within the video. “And it turned out to be the appropriate factor to do.”
Chatting with considered one of Epilogue’s black staff, Wolf goes on to say that the within eating rule is “completely discriminatory.” (By regulation, discrimination is prejudice or bias towards a protected class of individuals with respect to their race, age, gender, sexual preferences, or incapacity standing. Legally talking, COVID-19 vaccination standing doesn’t place somebody in a protected class of individuals). individuals.)
Epilogue additionally provides outside seating for individuals who can not present proof of vaccination.
One other video reveals Jones telling Wolf that he was banned from the restaurant due to the best way he handled his workers.
“It is formally been 86’d. When you ever return, you may be trespassing,” says Jones.
Wolf replies, “Properly, I am going to solely be trespassing if I’m going in,” as he seems to be standing on the sidewalk in entrance of Epilogue’s entrance doorways, close to their outside seating space.
Wolf didn’t reply to requests for remark from OPB.
Wolf’s movies on Gettr have a whole lot of feedback from individuals mobilizing to harass the restaurant. A number of of them mock Jones’ look and name for violence towards him. And lots of extra name on the group to depart unfavourable feedback on the web site’s numerous on-line profiles. That is when his scores on Google and Yelp plummeted.
“We have had over 150 false one-star evaluations,” Jones stated every week after the incident. “Most of them dive into racism fairly rapidly. Fairly rampant and disgusting racism.”
Jones stated about 75 pretend reservations have been made on-line in every week, made with names like “Come on Brandon,” a conservative code for insulting President Joe Biden. Epilogue acquired a whole lot of prank telephone calls and hateful voicemails; Jones stated he needed to inform the workers to cease answering the telephone, so solely he must bear the brunt of the hate.
“I’ll by no means eat at your restaurant now, later,” says a lady in a voicemail that has grow to be typical of the kind that floods the restaurant inbox. “I hope his enterprise goes below.”
Like lots of the callers, the girl on the voicemail gave the impression to be equating Epilogue’s coverage of requiring vaccinations for eating inside with racism. She went on to say that Epilogue’s meals in all probability “tastes like segregation”.
Jones, who’s black, stated the menu attracts inspiration from the black diaspora. You’ll be able to order fried duck leg topped with apple butter and chili-fig vinegar, or confit rabbit flavored with scorching spices.
Jones stated he and his spouse opened the restaurant about 12 years in the past to precise themselves creatively by way of meals and artwork.
“Every little thing we do is designed to indicate the marks of our arms; be a chunk of our soul, our coronary heart, our thoughts,” she stated.
A part of that isn’t being afraid to indicate what they imagine in, he stated, even when that may draw undesirable and typically scary consideration.
“When you sit right here lengthy sufficient, you will note unbridled hate directed on the restaurant,” Jones stated. “Each day, individuals stroll by. They discourage us, they shout ‘All lives matter’”.
Since its inception, Jones stated, Epilogue has suffered from racist graffiti and violent assaults. A lot of this was recorded on a restaurant safety digicam and posted on Epilogue’s Instagram account.
In a single video, a person and a lady seem to make a white energy image on digicam after which stroll away. In one other video, a person seems to be making an attempt to interrupt the glass entrance doorways, hitting them a number of occasions. Jones stated the incident broke glass.
Chris Younger, a daily buyer and pal of Jones’s, stated racist incidents appear to have grow to be extra prevalent in Salem because the 2020 racial justice protests, however they have not been a lot acknowledged by metropolis leaders.
“Each infrequently, a metropolis councilman has some harsh phrases in the course of a gathering or one thing,” he stated. “However so far as one thing tangible, one thing particular taking place to handle this subject, you very not often, if ever, hear something about it.”
Salem Mayor Chuck Bennett and Metropolis Councilman Chris Hoy, who’s slated to grow to be the following mayor, didn’t reply to requests for remark.
Jones stated he had gone to Salem police prior to now however did not really feel heard, so he did not report the Wolf incident or subsequent harassment.
The way in which he sees it, the people who find themselves pushed to violence towards his restaurant are indignant at his mere existence.
“The native hatred comes from the truth that we dare to say what we predict; we dare to create area and roll again the established order of a traditionally white utopia,” Jones stated. “And we’re additionally nice on the merchandise and the service we offer, and that completely brings them to the highest.”
However whereas that will draw some individuals’s hatred, others appear to like Epilogue twice as a lot. Epilogue staffer Madalena Martin stated the restaurant has grow to be a gathering place for individuals who could really feel misfits due to their race, gender or political beliefs, particularly in an space that tends to be conservative.
“Now I am right here and I am surrounded by different activists and different people who find themselves targeted on disrupting oppression in our society… It is simply therapeutic,” Martin stated.
Jones, who’s initially from the Philadelphia space, stated it doesn’t matter what, Salem is his neighborhood now, and no quantity of bullying or violence will drive him away.
“They will break our home windows, they will threaten my life,” Jones stated. “…I’ll proceed to be the superb individual that I’m.”
