Danforth BIA sorry for slogan
Facebook video referencing Trump and meant as ‘satire’ earns backlash from residents
Don’t expect the Danforth to build a wall and make the Beach pay for it.
Following social media backlash this week, the Danforth Village Business Improvement Area has apologized and removed references to a “Make Danforth Great Again” slogan it originally posted at the height of the U.S. presidential campaign early last November.
The slogan was featured in a Facebook video and on a page of the BIA’s website, both of which have been taken down.
“In a continued effort to ‘Make Danforth Great Again’ the Danforth Village Business Improvement Area (DVBIA) has embarked on a window washing service for all its merchant members. Currently, 170 businesses are participating in the program,” the page read.
It displayed photoshopped images of Donald Trump on the Danforth next to a red wagon bearing the slogan. The images were overlaid with Trump quotes like: “Part of the beauty of me is that I am very rich,” and: “Let me tell you, I’m a really smart guy.”
“This past week, a recent candidate in the US elections heard about the great work being done in Danforth Village and decided to drop in and see what all the hype was about,” the page read.
The red wagon has been used to carry window-washing supplies, said Councillor Mary-Margaret McMahon, who sits on the BIA’s board of directors. McMahon said the slogan will be removed from the wagon.
Some Danforth residents and shoppers took to the BIA’s Facebook page to express their disgust after a photo of the wagon was posted to social media earlier this week.
“I think you do a lot for our community and I am generally a big fan,” one posted. “However your ‘Make Danforth Great Again’ slogan and campaign is in terrible taste and is offensive. You are channelling a racist and a fascist. You are alienating everyone who stands up for civil rights and true equality.”
Another questioned on Twitter whether the BIA is “tone deaf” or “just like to steal slogans from White Supremacists.”
In a statement, Louie Dapergolas, chair of the BIA, apologized “to anyone who has been offended or insulted by this,” adding that the video was meant as satire.
“At the time, many of us believed that the idea that he would be elected president of the United States was outrageous. This video in no way suggests any support of Donald Trump or his beliefs, especially in light of what is currently happening in the United States,” she wrote.
“Instead, it was made to promote our Window Washing initiative, which is an exciting collaboration between the Danforth Village BIA and Dixon Hall, a shelter on Danforth Avenue. This initiative gives shelter users an opportunity to engage in gainful, meaningful employment.”
McMahon and councillor Janet Davis, also a member of the board, said they voiced their opposition to using the phrase during a meeting last fall.
Davis called it “completely inappro- priate” in the current political and social context. McMahon said the slogan did not reflect the diversity of the community and of business owners in the area.
“The BIA is an extension of the city and they should be remaining neutral in any election, let alone a contentious one and in another country,” McMahon said. “We’re trying to make the Danforth great again, like back historically. But obviously people weren’t thinking.”