Angie Ugarte, who owns the DeBary Diner in DeBary, Florida, has found a way to demonstrate her disapproval of the Biden administration's failed withdrawal from Afghanistan. As reported by Danielle Lama with FOX 35 Orlando, the diner has a sign on its door that reads: "If you voted for and continue to support and stand behind the worthless, inept and corrupt administration currently inhabiting the White House that is complicit in the death of our servicemen and women in Afghanistan, please take your business elsewhere."
The owner of a Debary restaurant has this sign posted on the front door. Why she says she posted it and reaction from residents at 10 #FOX35News pic.twitter.com/XKMiHKpViJ
— Danielle Lama FOX 35 (@DLama_FOX35) August 31, 2021
As Ugarte told the local FOX affiliate:
"It was the only thing I felt like I could do," said the restaurant’s owner, Angie Ugarte.
Ugarte says she posted the message the same day 13 service members were killed in Afghanistan.
"I was just angry. I was just let down. I felt like one of those mothers, or wives, or sisters who were gonna get that knock on the door," she explained.
Ugarte, who’s been running the DeBary Diner for about five years, says a lot of her regular customers are vets. She has an entire wall in the diner dedicated to members of the military. She blames President Joe Biden’s administration for the recent deaths in the Middle East.
"If you really, really still stand behind what’s allowed this to happen and the way it happened – which was unnecessary then I really don’t want to be associated with you in any way and I certainly don’t want your business," she told FOX 35 News.
The reaction appears to be mixed. The diner's Facebook page thanks supporters, noting that they've been so overwhelmed they have run out of food and need to close on Thursday to prepare for the weekend.
Yelp has restricted reviews, noting "This business is being monitored by Yelp's Support team for content related to media reports."
There's also an "Unusual Activity Alert" which reads:
This business recently received increased public attention, which often means people come to this page to post their views on the news. While we don’t take a stand one way or the other when it comes to this incident, we’ve temporarily disabled the posting of content to this page as we work to investigate the content you see here reflects actual consumer experiences rather than the recent events. Please note that we apply this same policy regardless of the business and regardless of the topic at issue. Read more on Yelp Support.
If you’re here to leave a review based on a first-hand experience with the business, please check back at a later date.
The restaurant has 2.5 stars on Yelp, which again has likely been affected by such news. On Google it has 4.2 stars