New Jersey Store Owner Fines Non-English-Speaking Customers

The Cutters Edge knife and blade store in Clifton, New Jersey has been embroiled in a scandal. All due to the fact that its owner placed a sign at the entrance that said "Speak English or pay $ 10 extra." The edition writes about it New York Post.

It is noteworthy that this store is located in an area where they speak mainly Spanish and Arabic, according to Daily voice.

After the store owner Dave Feinberg posted the sign, he received threatening calls and messages.

The angry residents of the city even demanded that the shop be closed. “We need to shut them down for being racist! Racism in New Jersey is discouraged, "wrote one user Twitter.

"Are such statements legal?" - noticed other.

Outraged townspeople also posted negative reviews on the Yelp app. “Anyone who came (to this store. - Ed.) with a parent, sister, friend or colleague who speaks another language should feel furious about it, ”reads another review.

“I'd rather go to a store where the owner understands that we live in a country where 350 different languages ​​are spoken, and no one has to pay for that,” wrote an angry Clifton resident.

The store owner tried to defend his position. Feinberg said he put up a sign "of disappointment" he experienced two weeks ago. Then he tried to deal with a client who "didn't even try to speak English." He also explained the indicated $ 10 - this is compensation for the fact that the client "spent 10 minutes of my time."

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But the businessman admitted that he made a "mistake" in deciding to charge additional fees. “I shouldn't have written anything but just 'speak English' or 'try to speak English,'” he said.

In addition, the businessman said that some people came to his store and supported what was written on the sign. Some even said, "Wow, I'm glad someone did this!"

That is, initially this sign did not create problems until calls began to arrive on his phone line, thereby blocking it. “Some people were pretty vulgar,” he said. “They said,“ I hope you go out of business and lose everything. ”

Feinberg eventually removed the sign and told the local news site that he was ready to apologize. However, he admitted that it is too late to repair the damage done to his reputation.

Clifton Councilor Rosemary Pino said the plaque is against the politics of a city that prides itself on its diversity: "Messages like this take us centuries back."