It used to be that you could get through most of the way without there being any way that unless you directly asked someone, you would have no idea what their political views are.
There was a coffee shop that I went to every other day for years and I would say hi to the owner every time I went in there, I never knew anything that he believed politically unless I directly asked.
Now, everyone has to make sure that they tell you what their political affiliation is before they even say their name. Now, it seems like everyone has to have these great political discussions everywhere, from libraries to gas stations. Some people are getting tired of it.
A business owner in a suburban Chicago city is making things political – and he is not afraid to explain why. He told WBBM-TV’s Jeremy Ross it is his right to do what some people say is just plain wrong.
Shaun Thompson, owner of the Elmhurst Cigar House, doesn’t mince his words when it comes to politics these days. He says if you voted for Joe Biden for president, he does not want your business, your cash, or your presence in his store – and he is prepared to suffer the consequences as a form of protest.
In downtown Elmhurst, there are many signs. But the one that was put up weeks ago at the Cigar House is starting to draw more attention. It’s a balloon-shaped orange paper sign with the handwritten words, “Biden Voters Keep Out!” The sign is quite shocking for many.
“I find it really, truly appalling – pretty much that I would like to say out and not go in,” one woman told WBBM. “I find it horrible.”
“I find that offensive,” another woman added. “I’m a Trump supporter, so if somebody put ‘Trump supporters stay out,’ I wouldn’t, you know, find that a very kind thing to put out.”
Speaking to us from South Florida, Thompson defended his decision to post the sign and keep Biden supporters out.
“I don’t want them anyway. I don’t want them in there, and I don’t to have to pretend that they have respect for me,” Thompson said, “so I’m going to show disrespect for them.”
Thompson said his stance is no joke. “Don’t come in my store. Tell your friends,” he said. “I don’t want you in the store. I don’t want you near me.”
Thompson has owned the Elmhurst Cigar House for about six years. But following the hotly-contested November presidential election, he decided a sign of protest was appropriate. And he said it was “absolutely” an issue of his own freedom of speech.