Julie Zuckman: Petition creating hostile co-op atmosphere

EVG Photos/StockSnap

Published: 10-29-2024 1:41 PM

If the objective of the deshelving petition at River Valley Co-op was to make member No. 80 cringe with fear and discomfort every time she walks into the food co-op, then the objective was achieved.

If the objective was to make me look at each cashier to see if they’re wearing pro-Hamas buttons on their aprons and pick one who isn’t, their objective was achieved.

If their objective was to make me thank each cashier who is not wearing a button for not wearing a button because I just want to buy my groceries and supplies in peace like everyone else, not as a Jew in that moment, their objective was achieved.

If their objective was to also compel me to approach the customer service desk every time I have one of these cashier experiences, in order that I may share with them what I feel compelled to do each time I’m in the store, then they have achieved their objective.

If their objective was to compel me to buy Israeli products I can’t eat because I have celiac and diabetes, and then put them in the donation bin by the entry door, their objective was achieved.

If their objective was to create such a climate of panic that when I went into a LBGTQIA-oriented cafe in downtown Florence and the barista was wearing a “From the River to the Sea” T-shirt, I told her I was leaving because of her T-shirt and not buying tea after all.

If their objective is to care more about a complicated long-term international foreign policy and human rights issue in another part of the world more than the feelings of the co-op member standing right in front of them at the cash register, they have achieved their objective.

If their objective was to promulgate a fundamental misunderstanding of what the co-op mission is about, as stated in its mission goals right from the beginning, then they have achieved their objective.

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