“66 days of non-stop demonstrations outside the Exxon gas station off Flat Shoals Rd” resulted in an agreement between the owner and a protest organizer to sell the station.
From the news report, it was revealed that community residents had suffered abuse from the gas station owner and his staff, and finally a video was released showing a clerk saying that he did not care about the Black community.
To his credit, the owner, Rahim Sivji, sacked the clerk and apologized. Members of the community, however, fed up with a lengthy history of abuse, continued to protest.
Sixty-six days of protests resulted in a severe drop in patronage of the station, forcing the owner to choose to sell his business in order to survive.
A bit about Cancel Culture overall: the public does not have many avenues to seek redress when owners or workers for any private enterprise grossly violates acceptable norms, leading to the use of boycotts and protest campaigns ranging from in-person protests to the broadcast of video messages. The idea is that people, collectively, can force powerful entities to act upon the demand of members of the public.
While the station is indeed up for sale, it remains to be seen whether or not the protest organizer will actually be able to raise the funds necessary to purchase the gas station.
To see the campaign status, or to donate, see the GoFundMe campaign page here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-us-buy-a-store
For business owners, the forced sale of this gas station should be a reminder that respecting customers is not only a key to success, it is a necessary part of running any business.
December 29, 2020
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