LAKEWOOD RANCH — Social media posts urging residents to boycott Mariposa Nursery and Garden Center went viral on Friday after ABC 7 aired a cell phone video depicting the owner telling a landscaper he had to remove the Mexican flag flying from his truck to shop at the business.
Veteran Manatee County landscaper Junior Celestino said the altercation took place while he was trying to make a purchase at the Lakewood Ranch nursery. In a cellphone video, the nursery owner can be heard telling Celestino that he had to take down the flag or leave the property.
In response to Celestino's protest that he had done nothing wrong, the woman can be heard telling him, “Because you’re flying the Mexican flag, and this is America, and this is my property. Leave. Leave. This is America, and we fly the American flag.”
In a statement released via Facebook by the nursery on Friday afternoon, the owner claimed Mr. Celestino told her he was flying the flag "in protest," which Celestino denies. "With the current events in our country, we did not want to be a part of any political narrative," the statement continued.
That post was shared over 150 times, with most users claiming that the video clearly refuted the owner's account of the events and some noting the irony that the nursery's name, Mariposa, is the Spanish word for butterfly. The nursery owner's complete statement can be seen below. Click here to see ABC 7's report on the station website.
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David Daniels
Clearly, the "political hostility" was initiated by the property owner. The misleading statement released by Mariposa amounts to a cover up hoping to keep making a profit from the hispanic community. They want to have their cake and eat it too. These kind of scenes are an extension of the hatred being expressed online and from political leaders.
Sunday, February 9 Report this