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'Their Tactics Are Out Of The Mafia Playbook': Mr. Pickle's In Davis Closed After Franchise Owner Compares Black Lives Matter To KKK

DAVIS (CBS13) — Mr. Pickle's Sandwich Shop in Davis was shut down by its corporate offices after the franchise owner sent an email to employees containing reportedly racist content.

Franchise owner Mickey Mann confirmed to CBS13 the contents of the email, in which he compared Black Lives Matter to the Ku Klux Klan.

"The BLM is the flip side of the KKK. Their tactics are out of the mafia playbook. They are no better than some of the worst oppressive regimes in the world," Mann wrote in the email.

He wrote the email after he says one of his employees wore a Black Lives Matter pin while working, making him feel as though his workers were forcing their beliefs on him.

"Over and over you have tried to force and are continuing to try to force your beliefs on me," Mann wrote in the email.

Mr. Mann tells CBS13 he does not allow any sort of political commentary in his shop and feels the comments he made were not racist. He also claims he began to receive hateful comments on the business review website Yelp which he reported to Davis police.

Mr. Pickle's Inc. permanently shut down the Davis franchise. In a Facebook post, the company wrote they were notified of "the alarming and painful statements made by the owner of the Davis shop to his staff. We made the decision to terminate his franchise and is now permanently closed for business. If that location ever re-opens, it will be under new ownership that upholds our corporate standards."

Mr. Pickles is a franchise network of independently owned and operated shops. Corporate has been notified of the...

Posted by Mr. Pickle's Sandwich Shops on Wednesday, June 10, 2020
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