PROTEST EL COYOTE!
Thursday, November 13th @ 7:00pm
El Coyote Cafe
7312 Beverly Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90036
Bring signs & friends!
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
PROTEST TO BOYCOTT EL COYOTE IS OFFICIAL!
PROTEST EL COYOTE!
Thursday, November 13th @ 7:00pm
El Coyote Cafe
7312 Beverly Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90036
Bring signs & friends!
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55 comments:
This is like finding out your boyfriend just cheated on you :-(
Funny the floor manager said "The boycott will affect 89 families."
He failed to mention how many of their employees are gay, have gay relatives or already are against Prop 8 to begin with.
Marjorie's attitude is more sickening than their bad food. How this place became an institution is beyond me, because it's not for food & bev quality.
As a teenager, my friends and I would go there (imagine, a table of six 15 year olds) and I used a drivers license that said I was 32 so that we could drink pitchers of margaritas.
If homos are now perceived as nothing more than baby-free shopping machines, here is where it's crucial to exercise an economic embargo.
Marjorie, you, your ostrich burritos and your Mormon Church can go to Hell.
Funny the floor manager didn't mention how many families the "Yes on 8" vote affected.
Funny, that.
Not.
Let me get this straight... you're going to boycott an entire restaurant because one woman opposed your views/lifestyle/political position?
So much for tolerance of differing opinions...
I found a cockroach at El Coyote. It was huge. It was crawling on the wall. I got my money back. There food is disgusting. It's a dump!
Oops ... I forgot to tell you. When I contacted the management, they wrote me a letter and said it was a "water bug" LOL What a farce!
I am so embarrassed by you guys. Things will change in their own time. You mean to tell me that you couldn't see she that was a conservative all these years just by looking at her??? She looks like a dykey Maria Schriver for god's sake. I hardly think that boycotting that place because of one person's actions is going to solve anything. If anything boycott them for their horrible food. Do you I need to remind you that OBAMA himself voted against 8?
It's not about tolerance it's about not giving money to someone to use it against us it's commonsense. Oh and by the way LAist has other restaurants we should be boycotting http://laist.com/2008/11/12/prop_8_and_where_you_eat_in_los_ang.php
Anonymous 8:18 - Here is where the distinction lies: Prop 8 was not a "views/lifestyle/political position" for me and my family. It's a civil rights issue for us.
Anonymous 10:04 - OBAMA himself (i) did not vote in California, he lives and voted in Illinois, and (ii) was in fact opposed to Prop 8.
@anonymous 10:40 PM:
Sorry, but our new messiah-elect is a hypocrite. Yes, He was against Prop 8. But He has also consistently been AGAINST marriage equality. How do you reconcile this? It is OK for Him to be against same-sex marriage but not the people of CA?
In for a dime, in for a dollar. Either we are deserving of the full rights, recognition, and responsibilities of Civil Marriage, or we're at the back of the bus with Civil "Unions". Separate but (far from) equal is supposed to be good enough?
Coming from a half-black man who is the product of a Civil Marriage that was illegal not so long ago is utterly vile. Don't you think it's long past the time we begin to hold Him accountable?
"The boycott will effect 89 families?"
Prop 8 destroyed more than 89 families.
Oh right, they were GAY families. They don't count, just second class to El Coyote families.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XrVgkGej4Ck
El Coyote. Fabulous Cadillac Margaritas... Stupid decision to vote Yes. *tsk tsk*
~DJ Nova Jade*
1) Loves it. Especially loves the comment about the boycott against someone who help steal Californians' rights away is "intolerant". "Tolerance for the intolerant" is one of the most egregious lies of the religious right, and one they've absolutely never observe themselves. Shocker. Except... not.
2) The guy on the left? Dreamy.
Has anyone realized the irony of a Mormon owning a restaurant with one of the cheapest happy hours?
Clearly she's not totally following what her church preaches. Making money off of alcohol which is a no no to her church is somehow ok so when this protest effects her income as well maybe she'll think for herself on gay equality too.
Here here, Phoebe!
I have the list of El Pollo Locos owned by Roland Spongberg of WKS Restaurant Corp. up at my site
Thanks for standing out front.
I'm very sorry a hundred dollars of the profits from this restaurant went to the Yes campaign. I'm also sorry that you think that somehow justifies your attempt to deprive 89 families of their livelihoods (many of whom, as Dino points out, are themselves gay or are anti-Prop 8).
This kind of petty crap does not help your image or your cause. It only reinforces the idea that's in the back of everyone's mind that your agenda isn't about equality but is about social re-engineering (through the power of the state).
The people here that are against boycotts or think it is silly or won't make a change...
Would you be opposed to boycotting a restaurant that wouldn't serve black because they viewed them as unequal to whites?
This isn't as simple as "agree to disagree" or the No on 8's dissing the Yes on 8's for their differing opinions. There shouldn't be anything to disagree about when it comes to equality. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions and beliefs, but when you force those opinions and beliefs upon others, and those opinions and beliefs strip citizens of their civil rights, it is a travesty.
I don't see anything wrong with boycotting businesses or affiliations that want to take civil rights from citizens of this state.
If Prop 8 was about supporting the civil rights of blacks or women (both of whom had fewer civil rights not that long ago) would you be for or against them? Why should it matter if the civil rights you are supporting belong to the gay community? Equality is about being equal, not about being selective with the equality.
Whoever the genius who commented that Obama himself voted for Prop 8 is seriously deluded. Not being a Californian, Obama could not have voted for Prop 8 since it did not appear on his ballot in Chicago. Secondly, what people are not getting is that Marjorie is not just the manager, she is the in-effect owner, being that her mother, the listed owner, is 89 and doesn't lift a fingernail in the running of El Coyote. And, yes, it is right to boycott the entire restaurant so that more of our dollars arae used promoting hate and bigotry.
this fight isn't big enough...we need to go bigger. El Coyote is just the tip of the iceberg. Let me know when we are going to rally to attack all the Mexicans and Hispanics. We need to make sure they hear our voice too. Also, 7 out of 10 african americans voted Yes!!! What are we going to do about them? Let's go people, we need to organize!!! I'm up for marching on Inglewood, Compton and Watts this weekend. Let me know who is in.
11:40 AM your fake attempt to be pro-boycott is very pathetic. You just don't get it. The whole "why don't you rally in Compton" crap doesn't make sense because there's no gay-friendly businesses there.
Please tell me did blacks and latino communities ever make money off from gay communities regularly, go off to tell them they 'love' them, 'teasure them' then stab them in the back?
The outrage of El Coyote is that it makes money off from a large Gay community, then she use that profit to support taking civil rights from her clients, and donate her profit to a church that preach her to anti-gays. The fact she's clueless why people are upset and claimed she still welcome gays is what's the most revolting. Her 'life long faith' also preach against alcohol yet she makes money of them. She's just a greedy hypocrite pretends to be a friend. Boycott that pathetic woman and her sorry excuse to profit from the poeple she's against.
I just found your blog, Micah. It's great! Keep up the good work. I'll be checking in regularly.
Boycotts sometimes hurt people who support the cause. South African blacks were certainly hurt when that country was boycotted due to apartheid. But we have to draw a line in the sand. This has gone too far.
No more "Mr. Nice Gay!"
To the anonymous poster who cited me:
1) why are you apologizing? and why apologize anonymously?
2) you misunderstood my point. The floor manager attempted to gain sympathy for the restaurant in saying that their 89 employees (and families) would be affected by a justified boycott.
But what of those 89 employees who are gay? who believe in fighting Prop 8? who have gay family members who want to marry?
The boycott of El Coyote is not only an excellent localized expression of economic power but if it's done successfully, it sends a message to other business owners who also love the gay dollar but couldn't give a shit about their gay clientele. It also incites more discourse on ethical commerce, including business owners and consumers.
Yes, a boycott on El Coyote might be the "tip of the iceberg" but the tip is not only a part of that iceberg, its often the only visible part of the bigger part that begs to be exposed.
"All, too, will bear in mind this sacred principle, that though the will of the majority is in all cases to prevail, that will to be rightful must be reasonable; that the minority possess their equal rights, which equal law must protect, and to violate would be oppression."
- Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States, the principal author of the Declaration of Independence, and one of the most influential Founding Fathers
I read up on this and I have to say that I have mixed feelings about this ban of El Coyote. I fear that the LGBT community is going to be viewed as this angry, reactionary, finger pointing group which will only hurt us as our cause moves forward. So now we're hating on the Black, Over 65, Latino communities AND El Coyote? If it was a clear cut issue of the entire restaurant backing Prop 8 that would be one thing, but the owners and staff obviously have a division in regards to their stance on this.
We have to fight, but we also have to put a cap on the rage. This is not just my opinion, but one that has been stated by the No on 8 campaign. This battle is about love and the right to love whom we choose, not trying to hurt people because we have been hurt. That approach has never helped any disenfranchised group. I'm just dismayed by the way that this is all playing out, and I think that the fact that El Coyote is going to donate to Lambda Legal and the Gay and Lesbian Center should count for something.
Repeal Prop 8!
http://www.couragecampaign.org/page/s/repealprop8
Micah,
My boyfriend IM'd me today and gave you kudos for breaking the El Coyote/Prop 8 connection- Just wanted to say thanks for creating a place for this discussion to happen- 189 comments and counting- congrats, that's really something.~ Didn't know you were n activist, did you?
Keep up the good work-
I'm a straight guy who fully supports gay marriage rights. I actively campaigned against Proposition 8. I understand the need for protest: I will be joining the rally at City Hall at 10:30 a.m. tomorrow. And if El Coyote as an establishment, or the majority of its ownership, or its management, supported Yes on 8, I'd give up my favorite margaritas and boycott. But I believe the scapegoating of a workplace as diverse as El Coyote based on the small personal donation of one member of its ownership family is misguided.
If you're interested, you can read a longer version of my thoughts on this in my last two posts at lafoodcrazy.blogspot.com, but I will just point out, in response to a comment here, that the suggestion that employees of El Coyote who are endangered by the boycott - many of whom are, in fact, openly gay - should "get other jobs" truly don't understand the nature of the restaurant. It is a family place in every sense, where owners, management, regulars, and staff treat each other like family. One might as well suggest that you get a new brother or sister just because you disagree with their politics.
I also suspect, given its number of gay employees, that the total donations to NO on 8 coming from EC staff probably outweighed Margie's $100. Just a guess.
First of all, I'm definitely not happy with her decision and I will not be going back to El Coyote because of it, but I also will not be going to the protest in front of it.
Let me explain, I was born mormon & gay. I was raised mormon and I left the church in high school when my homosexuality could not be denied anymore. And I have been going to every No on 8 protest possible in my area, and I intend to go to Sacramento on Nov.22 if we haven't already won by then.
Almost my whole family is still mormon. My Grandma was forced by her church (mormon)to give $300 to the yes on 8 campain. They came to her house and threatened her standing in the church, then told her what she owed. The church people are all she has in the world so she gave.
But she voted No on 8 :)
I think that there are a lot of these mormons. The mormon church is strong and powerful. And what sucks about this situation is that now we are fulfilling their prophesy and, in their eyes, proving that their beliefs are correct.
The mormon church believes that in the last days (now,) they will be persecuted for what they believe, and the people will rise up against them. They will become hated for standing their ground and supporting their church. Which is exactly what we're doing here. Persecuting one woman for her religious conviction. Aren't we telling her that she can't be who she wants to be?
So she's a biggot and I'm a lesbian, to thine own self be true.
Great blog....Fuck the media for not covering our protests as civil rights issues...they would rather do FLUFF pieces thatn give us our due....We are the new BLACK...Our new President elect needs to support our marriage rights or we are just going to be at the back of the bus with our "civil unions". Separate is not equal.
I will be there to support our Gay & Lesbian Community & other minorities fighting for Equality.
Check out My Protest Sign: http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d43/villalink/El_Bigot_byDVillanuevaProtestSignfo.jpg
Protest Sign:
El Coyote site
"We are the new BLACK"
- NOT QUITE
it's a real stretch to compare prop on o public lynchings, refusing to serve blacks at restaraunts, sitting in the back of the bus only, "colored"only water fountains, no blacks allowed in schools etc, etc, etc. I am sorry that prop 8 passed, but to compare it to the civil rights that were denied back then is a real strech of the truth.
what the hell? why are we wasting our time protesting some stupid little restaurant in WeHo? Hit the city halls! Hit the state capitol! Protest EVERY state building you can find! The people that gave to the damned yes on 8 can't do anything now! It's the state who shouldn't have allowed this to even be on the ballot! Our government officials are the ones with the power! oh my god... she gave a hundred dollars.. are we going to start lynching those who voted on 8 ???? come on people.. FOCUS!!! State facilities!! Think about it.
I heard about this on NPR today. For all the talk of love and tolerance, the pro-8 folks are coming across as very unloving and intolerant. These protesters can't enjoy a good meal from someone who takes a different view? Somehow hurting her business will make people like me want to support your cause? Sorry, but this plays poorly for the anti 8'ers.
Adam in Fort Worth, Texas
Marjorie wrote a letter that will soon be published.
Another foolish boycott by self centered west hollywood. Try boycotting the Abbey! Its Persian owned and the owner's family contributes to Middle east terrorism against the US
Adam from Ft. Worth, you're confused. We're anti-8, not pro-8.
And why should we be loving or tolerant of people who conspired to take away our rights. Would you expect a black person to be tolerant of a KKK member? A Jewish person to be tolerant of a Nazi? Prop 8 is discrimination and the people who supported it are bigots, no matter how nice they might seem on the outside. That's the thing about bigotry. Human beings perpetrate it. They're not necessarily monsters, but they're wrong.
It's not just a matter of someone "taking a different view." These are people who took away our civil rights. Why should we help them prosper when they take away our rights?
This is a boycott, not a lyching. We're just choosing not to spend our money at this restaurant and calling attention to our reasons. People can choose to go there or not. I don't understand why that's so awful.
Also, we're not here to cater to people like you and make sure that you like us. That hasn't worked for us to date, which is why it's important to take a stronger stance now. Either you're for equal rights or you're not. Even we disagree with each other on how far we're willing to go with boycotts and protests. That doesn't change our ultimate agreement that we deserve to be treated equally as tax-paying Californians.
http://campaignsilo.firedoglake.com/2008/11/14/el-coyote-anger-tears-and-maybe-hope/
I'm very sorry a hundred dollars of the profits from this restaurant went to the Yes campaign. I'm also sorry that you think that somehow justifies your attempt to deprive 89 families of their livelihoods (many of whom, as Dino points out, are themselves gay or are anti-Prop 8).
This kind of pathetic and petty crap does not help your image or your cause.
Photos from the protest on LAist:
http://laist.com/2008/11/14/photos_from_the_el_coyote_protest.php
Yes, sorry about saying pro-8 when I should have said anti-8'ers.
I understand you are pissed, but that doesn't justify assault. I would be pissed if someone took away my marriage, but I would not be justified in assaulting them.
And please stop comparing gays to jews persecuted by nazis and slaves persecuted by slavery and segregation. Just because you identify with these groups does not support a correlation. African americans voted for prop-8 2 to 1.
Marriage is a right, but not for same sex couples.
What argument do you have that same sex people have a right to marry?
Adam in Fort Worth
anonymous, we're not responsible for the 89 El Coyote employees. They can take any concerns up with their boss. The Montgomery bus employees had families, too, but did Rosa Parks let that stop her from boycotting? It's not like El Coyote is the only gig in town.
Adam - A boycott is not assault.
No one is beating Marjorie up.
And no, I won't stop comparing gays to other oppressed groups. Discrimination is discrimination; we are all people who have been persecuted for being ourselves and being different. Being gay is not a choice, any more than being black or female is a choice.
A majority of African-Americans voting for Prop 8 does not invalidate our status as an oppressed minority, any more than Jews or women being racist in the 50's would invalidate the racial civil rights movement.
Same sex couples have a right to marry because we are Americans. We pay taxes just like heterosexuals. This is the land of the free - not just for heterosexuals, but for all of us, gay, straight, black, white, whatever. The US Constitution says that EVERYONE deserves equal protection under the law. That includes gay and lesbian Americans.
Adam in Texas (that bastion of human rights),
That's not how laws work. It's not the question of why gays deserve equal rights. The Constitutional question is "why do they NOT deserve it?" And that question has to be answered by you, not us. At least if you think Constitution is important.
Don't even try to pretend you were to any degree pro-gay. If you were, you wouldn't be posting this BS.
To anonymous 10:11
You have to think of the bigger picture. If I was an employee of the two faced Benedict Arnold, I would go on strike in support of our cause. These employees who are gay, or even those who are not, should be forming an alliance with us and not crying about their jobs. Personally, I would be out there with the rally, and I would be spending what would have been my work shift outside the door with a picket sign!! (mind you, this is just my personal take).
Margie created a division with her back stabbing tactic, and the employees need to make a choice: suck it up and work and don't cry about it, or get out there and support the cause. Their monetary compensation to other gay causes, while appreciated, does NOT make up for the injustice against us. BOYCOTT, BOYCOTT, BOYCOTT!!
And to anonymous 7:30
What assault? Who assaulted whom? Did someone get "assaulted" when I wasn't paying attention?????
davidwf,
Ah, yes, "the bigger picture"; that refuge of all those who want to turn eyes away from the "collateral damage" resulting from the brutality and violence carried out in the name of their "cause".
You're ridiculous. If you want to tar and feather this woman who gave a hundred dollars to a political campaign you don't like just do so. Sometimes the old ways are better. But don't force a decision on these eighty-nine families (isn't that what you perceive this fight as being about, personal autonomy?) that they do not have the right to employment because you don't like their boss' politics.
Listen DavidWF, being one of the many protesters in front of El Coyote, i understand that there are about 89 employees (some of them who are either gay or straight) working and doing a great job for the restaurant. THEY are part of the reason why people have been going there for years or even decades. And i have to admit, it makes it hard thinking that they have to see all this, but in the end what we do is necessary and important.
Marjorie's stance like other L.A. & WeHo proprietors & employees who supported or omitted from making a choice regarding Prop.H8. must realize and understand that we will not tolerate any degree of IGNORANCE & BIGOTRY. Stripping a minorities right, or following a doctrine that aims in depriving a group from equality that we should automatically inherit is disreputable.
She made a decision that she does not want to recant, which is fine, because we live in a society were we may chose to do, speak, and vote however our heart may desire. But it's not enough for our community, but enough to allow us to begin a grass-roots plan to boycott places that cannot have a double-dealing stance.
My Comparison: During the holocaust the Jewish community spread word that the Nazi's had COLLABORATORS(whom were JEWISH)to help them capture & eventually annihilate them from all liberty & later life. Well, after word spread about this the Jewish Community decided to boycott and disclaim these COLLABORATORS from their community. They were disowned.
About her donation (which some agree was a feeble amount): It doesn't matter the amount. Hate is Hate. Hate comes in different levels, but in my book there is no greater hate than the other. All Hate is the same and should not be tolerated.
The manager tries to make us feel guilty for the lives of the 89 people whom work there...well sympathize with me and others when i tell you that more lives are being affected because of her reckless decision.
So the 89 people become casualties from this battle. I doubt that El Coyote will go financially under because of us, but they will hopefully feel the impact of no longer being a place for Gays & Lesbians, and remember that even small stones of hatred may cause GIANT ripples.
"All Hate is the same and should not be tolerated."
I will not tolerate your hate, either, Derek.
Mr.Anonymous, I guess you must have given my first statement your own twist and emphasis, because i didn't write it out of hatred but out of respect & truth. That's what the Gay & Lesbian Community want, respect and equal representation and throughout history that's what all minorities have wanted.
I'm trying to speak on behalf of the G&L Community with the fact that we don't hate people, we hate that fact that hate exist within all of us. And sometimes people make choices without thinking because what their doctrine teaches them (Ignorance) encroaches the rights of certain individuals.
And I'm really targeting doctrines that want to eliminate true equality from certain groups of people.
Boycotting El Coyote, is just one of the first steps to spread our message, LOUD & CLEAR!
I don't hate the 89 people that still work for El Coyote. I don't ask them to resign, nor do i ask anything from them. I don't and the community doesn't either. But were simply taking a stand- a stand for our deserved rights, that should automatically be innate.
-Derek
Email: derek@derekvillanueva.com
Derek,
You sound like any ideologue defending himself. Tweak the words a bit and they could come out of the mouths of Donald Rumsfeld, bin Laden, Fred Phelps, Pol Pot, or Stalin. Your rhetoric is empty and crap. Next time you're near El Coyote stop by and thank the servers, etc., there for contributing to the cause by giving up the tips your pathetic and self-indulgent little protest has cost them and get a dose of reality.
Sure, I'll take your compliment. As for the 1 dose of reality...I've had my share of drinks and i can say that i can never get enough of that.
:)
Compliment, huh? Well, at least we agree as to what you are.
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