A large protest outside an &pizza location in D.C. is still set to take place Friday night in response to the local pizza chain’s creation of a controversial menu item that references the late D.C. Mayor Marion Barry and his cocaine use.
Organizers said the protest along U Street in Northwest was still happening despite a formal apology from Mike Burns, the CEO of the company.
“Candidly, we made a mistake. And for that, we sincerely apologize,” Burns said in a letter to the community this week. “While humor was our intent, it was regrettably off the mark.”
&pizza stirred up outrage by promoting a dessert called “Marion Berry knots,” which are pieces of dough covered with powdered sugar.
Ads for the dessert make the powdered sugar look like cocaine sealed in tiny plastic bags, clearly making fun of Barry’s infamous drug arrest from the 1990s when he was caught smoking crack in an FBI sting operation.
The ads include lines with references to cocaine use such as, “Enough powder for you and a few friends” and, “Our classic knots got a bump.”
Supporters of Barry said focusing on his arrest was unfair, pointing to his legacy of creating the D.C. summer youth employment program back in 1979, which continues to this day and helps young people find jobs and training.
The item has since been taken off the menu.
“They make derogatory comments about Black leaders and then think there won’t be any repercussions,” said local activist Ron Moten, one of the organizers of the Friday protest.
Moten said the protest would include people standing around the business and encouraging people not to go inside and spend money there.
“He needs to be sensitized to what type of harm his remarks and his antics can do to a community,” Moten said, referring to Burns. “We do believe people can be forgiven if they’re sincere, but healing is a process.”
Moten said he and others have agreed to sit down with Burns next week and discuss how they can move forward.
When D.C. police were asked about the possibility of protests, the department said it “respects everyone’s right to protest and assembly.”
“We routinely ensure the safety of First Amendment demonstrators, and handle thousands of protests each year. We will not tolerate any unlawful behavior and will hold anyone who commits a criminal act responsible,” a police spokesperson said in a statement.
Moten himself said he would not tolerate anyone physically damaging the business in any way.
“None of us promote or condone anything like that,” Moten said. “I wouldn’t even stand with anybody who would do that.”
&pizza has locations in D.C., Maryland, Virginia, Philadelphia and New Jersey.
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