Cinderella Bakery’s owner says tactics remind him of the Russia he left
A new era has begun for the former building of La Victoria — the famed Mexican panaderia that was evicted by its own founders after 67 years in business. Earlier this month, the building was purchased by the owners of another venerable purveyor of baked treats: Cinderella Bakery.
“We were looking at different multi-ethnic neighborhoods in the city and we think [the Mission] will be a good fit,” said Mike Fishman, who owns Cinderella Bakery with his wife Marika.
Lovers of Russian baked goods will likely delight in Cinderella’s offerings of breads, pirogi, and fried piroshki — but 24th Street stalwarts, like Erick Arguello of the Calle 24 merchants association, will not.
During a phone call Monday, Arguello told Fishman that Calle 24 will organize an indefinite boycott of Cinderella Bakery if Fishman does not let La Victoria’s operators — who have no association with its original founders — re-occupy the space. That includes picketing outside the business, he said.
Fishman said the phone call was unpleasant. “He threatened me and said, ‘I’m gonna boycott your business,’” Fishman said. “I said, ‘That’s not how you open a conversation.’”
Already, Fishman has seen a “flood” of angry emails from those who oppose Cinderella’s opening.
Arguello confirmed the conversation with Mission Local, explaining that Calle 24 will organize boycotts for any business that takes over a space following an eviction in that space.
The fact that La Victoria’s eviction was instigated by the Maldonado family, whose son owned the bakery, did not matter, Arguello said.
“We’re a Latino cultural district, and we’re seeing a lot of Latino businesses being evicted,” Arguello said. “Even though (Cinderella Bakery) is legacy business, its history is in the Richmond. It’s not here in the Latino cultural district.”
Since at least October, Cinderella’s owners had been eyeing the building, which went on sale in March for $3.4 million amid a dispute among the family that founded La Victoria on 24th Street in 1951.
The turmoil surrounding Maldonado Family Trust led the family to evict the bakery, its operators, and subtenants in July. The bakery ultimately vacated in October.
Having closed in mid-November, Fishman said he made the purchase for “around $3 million,” a bit less than its original listing price but what he still described as “steep.” He described his tenancy in his Richmond space as a little “shaky,” as he says the business is two years into his five-year lease, and has not been able to secure a longer-term lease.
“We’re trying to have some sort of control and stay in business,” Fishman said.
Moreover, he mentioned in October that Cinderella had also outgrown the space where it produces and distributes wholesale products, in addition to running a retail storefront.
Fishman emigrated to the United States from the Soviet Union in 1988 and eventually took over Cinderella at Sixth and Balboa from two Russian women who had previously operated it. Cinderella has been in business since 1953 and is a registered legacy business with the city, which awards it special protections.
Arguello, one of the de facto gatekeepers of the 24th Street corridor, went through pains to emphasize the “larger context” of his organization’s actions against Cinderella. He said anchor Latino organizations like Galeria de la Raza, Discolandia, and La Victoria are increasingly becoming endangered, as are working-class Latino residents in the neighborhood.
Galeria’s landlord recently asked for a hike in rent and building improvements for a two-year lease. Discolandia closed in January 2011, a victim of online music sales and an owner who was nearing retirement age. It was replaced by several food ventures, most recently a chain selling roast beef.
“It doesn’t matter who comes,” Arguello said. “It’s replacing a business that has a lot of history in the Latino community.”
It’s unclear how much support Arguello has or what impact a boycott would have. Many of the new businesses on 24th Street — a roast-beef shop, a brewery, yoga studios and others, have managed to integrate with the neighborhood.
Supervisor Hillary Ronen declined to comment for this article, saying she is only just hearing of the threatened boycott and needs to look into the situation.
Fishman said that he plans to keep the building’s two other commercial tenants — a jewelry store and a hair salon — in the building at the same rent, for the meantime. He added that he plans to hire back some La Victoria bakers to make Mexican pastries.
And the concept of displacement is not lost on Fishman. He told Mission Local that his family largely left Russia because it was persecuted for its Jewish heritage. And his phone call with Arguello reminded him a bit of those days.
“I dealt with this in the Soviet Union. It was very hard,” he said. “You were singled out, and that’s the reason we came here — to have a better life.”
Erick Arguello and John Mendoza are thug losers who should be removed from the Calle 24 council. Their bullying tactics will fail them and eventually Calle 24. Calle 24 remove these pathetic bums ASAP.
The Mission District is a State Designated Latino Cultural District. Carnival one of the biggest parades in the country, Carlos Santana more Grammys than Michael Jackson, world renowned mural spot, called the leftist most place next to Havana by Director Luis Malle, Benjamin Bratt, Creator of the first burrito ever, Voted best place to live by a Dubai magazine. If you don’t like Gay people don’t move to the Castro. Don’t like Asians stay away from Chinatown. Don’t like African American’s don’t move to Harlem You see where I’m going with this?Tens of thousands would give anything to live here. At least the millennials get it and put up with commuting over an hour to come back to the Mission. DO you honestly think they want to live here because of Cinderalla Bakery? We should be thanking the Eric Arguellos who courageously fight to preserve the culture. To the old fart whiners: you owe it to yourselves to live someplace where you’re not miserable. If you like change go where change already happened like Concord. Why overpay for a place that you hate? How ungrateful to live in one of the most desired places in the world and complain. The last thing I’d ever want is to wake up look in the mirror and see you. Regarding the story totally biased. The new owner refused to talk to Calle 24, he does in fact have plans for condos. Him and Jamie have been conspiring for months and now he plays dumb. Very disappointed in Mission Locals sloppy coverage.
Don Enrique decided then and there that something needed to be done, and that he had to act fast. Without his saying anything, Guardiàn spun around, reared on his hind legs, and sped out of the plaza with a snort and a whinny. “On Guardiàn!” cried Don Enrique, “Take me there while I think.” And so on the faithful steed ran while Don Enrique formed a plan. Up and up and up went the Arab charger, to the top of the outcropping that overlooked Doña Victoria’s bakery. From this vantage point, from which one could be all seeing without the possibility of being seen, Don Enrique cast his eyes below. intent on seeing what it was that Doña Maria and her mother had described. Before long, two men in fur hats and high boots appeared, stamping their feet and gesticulating by waving their arms broadly through the cool evening air. Soon, a woman exited from the back door of the bakery. She was sturdily built with a round and pleasant face and straight blond hair gathered in a bun. In front of her she carried a tray, one edge resting on her apron for support. It was loaded with pastries, which she offered to each of the men who, surprised by her appearance, cut off their conversation and smiled in gratitude, their thick mustaches curling upward as they bowed slightly, from the hips, to thank the woman for her generosity, each man choosing a steaming piroshki with gingerly politeness. Don Enrique knew now what he had to do. Dismounting from Guardiàn, who had long since begun contenting himself by munching the fresh grass in front of him, Don Enrique reached quietly into his saddlebag to pull out a piece of bearskin he had recently stowed there. Working with his ever-present knife and the hairpins that Doña Maria had given him on one balmy evening, he made an exact replica of the kind of hat that the men wore. Fitting it to his head and tucking his trouser legs into his boots, he then remounted Guardiàn and rode quietly down to Doña Victoria’s, sitting tall in the saddle. Guardiàn, intuiting the plan, fell into a regal canter, adding an extra fillip to the fall of his hooves to impart an easterly ornateness to his cadence. It was not long before the pair arrived at the bakery, whereupon Don Enrique cried out with a hearty wave: “Tovarishchi!” The two men on the ground stopped their discussion and looked up at the man on his horse. “Tovarishch!” they replied, turning now to face their new arrivals squarely. “How are you this fine evening,” said Don Enrique, smiling broadly and indicating the view in front of him with a wide sweep of his arm. “We are fine, comrade, very well,” replied one of the men on the ground. “Please join us for a piroshki, or a pirogi if you prefer.” “Thank you, comrade, you are most kind,” said Don Enrique, “It is not often that one comes across such fine fare in this area.” Don Enrique selected a pirogi from the tray and, first raising it in salute, took a big bite. “The two men smiled, their thick mustaches arcing upward with appreciation and approval. “This delicious piroshki reminds me of home,” said Don Enrique, smiling back at them. Guardiàn stomped his foot and let out a snort. The two men quickly looked at each other before one of them tilted his chin and asked, “Oh really, comrade, an where might that be?” Don Enrique, smiling back at the men, replied, “In the motherland, comrade, you know what I mean.” And to this the two men smiled and nodded in agreement. “Yes, comrade, the motherland.” Don Enrique finished his pirogi and delicately cleaned his fingers before settling his eyes on Doña Maria’s bakery. “You are very busy, yes?” Don Enrique said, raising his eyebrows and glancing at the white smoke now billowing from the bakery’s smokestacks. “Oh, not really, comrade, we make only a few snacks for our friends and family. It is a little hobby of ours, just to keep ourselves busy.” “I see,” said Don Enrique, ” very nice indeed. I shall let you get back to it then, and I kindly thank you for the excellent repast.” And with that Don Enrique mounted Guardiàn and turned to depart, giving the steed a smart giddy up with his heels. As the two rode off toward the setting sun, the two men on the ground watched them. When the man and his horse were several lengths distant, but still within earshot, one of the men tilted his chin and said, “Tovarishch! Buenas noches!” to which the other man let out a stifled laugh, his cheek puffing out and piroshki crumbs blowing from his lips. Upon hearing this greeting, Don Enrique felt his cheeks flush and saw flames danced before his eyes. Suddenly he could feel the pastry deep within his belly. He grabbed the reigns tightly and then realized that Guardiàn had dropped his head, so low that his nose almost touched the ground, his feet hitting the earth with a dull thud.
1 by one are disappearing
I am saddened by the political climate of the streets I used to ride my bike on. Now I am a veterano of the neighborhood. Roberto and Eric are like me saddened by the dot com sweep of the neighborhood. I remember all where I was born and raised on 20/21st on treat was all families in every house and flat… no more!! The 50s were nothing like now there was parking and no street sweepers….. now no place to park and your unmolested stay depends on how much change you have. I used to go to la Victoria in the 50s and 60s yes things have changed!! Remember blockbuster videos?? The person who owns the property is the business owner and cements the future. It’s not easy to get that far from a start up in San Francisco I know I opened up in 1975 so yeah I know a little about it. I missed the chance I can never go back in time but I can see and predict the future of the Misión. Si se puede!! Cesar and Dolores saw the obstáculos and Did what needed to be done. Anyone remember Operation Wetback??? After WW2. I remember the bullseye on my back. Anyone remember the grapes being boycotted at Safeway on Mission street? Just so the people who did the work in 100 degree heat and were being sprayed with pesticides with impunity so yeah I have a different point of view than most. So…….si se puede ahuaahhh!!!!!!
It’s about time that Eric Arguello, and his compadre Roberto Hernandez and their outdated organization Calle 24 rides off into the sunset. It’s quite clear that their strong armed tactics have grown old, and that they have seen the light of day, and people are noticing. First it was the new bikes in the Mission, and Erics’ claim that Latinos don’t use bikes. Huh? So because of that idiotic statement they moved the bike rack to 25th Street instead of somewhere on 24th Street. All day the bikes are gone. How about that? Then we have the issue of the property on Mission where Popeyes used to be, and is now an empty lot. Some immigrant butcher happens to own the lot, wants to build on it, and Eric and Roberto asks us to not only protest the owners business, but to bother him at his home and to bother his neighbors!!! All this just because he does not see things their way and refuses to sell the building to one of their organizations. Now we have a business that has gone under not because white tech people stopped shopping there, but because of unfortunate family issues that could not be resolved. Not even Mr Arguello could bring love between the family. So, the building was sold, and for the first time since the 1950’s there is no La Victoria. Enter another long standing SF family operated business, Cinderella. The family sees an opportunity to grow, and legitimately acquires the now defunct business. They’re crime according to Eric Arguello is they are from another district and they are not latino, or happened to previously worked in the building they just bought. What would he be saying if Trump made these accusations? Racist? Prejudiced? I would bet the answer is an overwhelming yes. Its time for Supervisor Ronin to distance herself from them, and their organization, particularly Arguello. He has proven to be an embarrassment to his people on more that one occasion, and proven to be out of touch with what the inhabitants of The Mission District really want. As I have stated before, Eric does not speak for me, or anyone that I know. And I’ve lived here a lot longer than he, or his family has. Hey Eric, go away. Stop embarrassing yourself. People are seeing how out of touch you really are. In fact, go for a nice bike ride, and try to find a little compassion.
nativemissionite, it’s interesting that you mention Supervisor Ronin’s involvement. I wrote to her weeks ago about local issues, and haven’t heard back. I wonder if she is only interested in her constituents who represent the “The Mission has always been Hispanic and everyone else should keep out” trope. It’s time to consider the needs, wants, and desires of all the Mission’s residents, not just the self-appointed advocates for a single ethnic group. (And yes, I’ve lived here since before many of the advocates were born…)
This is so eloquently stated. I wish someone would send a copy of this to Supervisor Ronen, and that Mission Local would publish this as an editorial.
Would be interesting to taste a Russian/Mexican pastry fusion.
These are the same people who have strong armed bike share stations away from the whole area around 24th St, Including 24th and Mission Bart. Apparently only millionaire white techies ride GoBikes.
I don’t understand why Calle 24 would oppose bike sharing stations as the bikes are provided to low income riders for a low fee of only $5 per year (!). Their opposition to bike share stations is mind-boggling, given that it provides a virtually free (and healthful) transportation option for the supposed constituents of Calle 24. Or is this another case of ideology getting in the way of common sense?
Pat’s point is a good one.
Also, just for the record, La Victoria was TERRIBLE. La Reyna and La Mexicana which are a few blocks in opposite directions from La Victoria are both fresher, cleaner, and more friendly options. La Victoria deserved to go out of business. If you want Mexican pastry, walk a few blocks in either direction and there are much better options.
Calle 24: “Nice little bakery you have there. It would be a shame if something happened to it.”
Robert Tillman: “We intend to have fun creating a legal precedent that will shut down forever the shakedown racket of MEDA, of Calle 24, and of the other Mission Activists.”
Rosh HoshHosh: “I support bigoted, nativist, extortionist behavior if it is in alignment with my ideological/political preferences.”
I support peaceful, organized, grassroots activism whether or not it is in alignment with my ideological/political preferences.
I also support Bob Tillman’s right to sue the city. On guard.
Rosh, you seem to be implying that Robert Tillman’s quote is bad or wrong. Creating a legal precedent shows you have the rule of law on your side. It is a good thing to have rules/laws for society to follow and live by.
Stopping the shakedown racket is a good thing. Do you want to keep the shakedowns going? I’m confused on where you stand. Are you for following the rules or for mob rule?
Hi John. I’m just reminding Mr. Tillman that he has skin in the game.
My general stance is that our historic corridors need to be protected, and they need people fighting for them. The “rules” regarding urban infill are changing quickly — it is important that communities have a say in them.
The “mob rule” bit is hyperbole. I condemn any threats of violence or property damage. Lawsuits and boycotts are fair game. They are — despite Karl’s wants — legal. Rosh
Yes! Or: “Fishman, ain’t it? Don’t hear that name too often ‘roun’ these parts. Got kind of a funny ring to it.”
As a resident of the Mission living 2 blocks away from the disputed shop, I welcome Cinderella to the neighborhood and pledge to buy all my baked good from it as long as the Calle 24 bullies continue to harass them.
Change and diversity are great, especially coming from other minority groups, such as Russian Jewish.
Welcome, Cinderella!
Wow! Talking about revised discrimination, hypocrisy much, and I will definitely travel out of my way to support this new bakery.
Julian, you really need to educate yourself about the Mission district. Deciding to include a quote about Mr. Fishman’s comparison of the repression in the Soviet Union to the alleged convo /ask ftom Erick is silly and lazy writing. You are giving no context to Calle 24 and what its mission is. Also story confirming a conversation took place between Erick and Mr. Fishman does not confirm that Erick opened the conversation with a threat. Please, be more accurate, fair and less biased in your reporting.
Cinderella Bakery taking over the La Victoria space is a big win for the community. It’s not Starbucks, it’s not condos. It’s not a Soul Cycle. It’s a mom and pop bakery which has already pledged to hire some of the La Victoria baking staff to keep making some of their products. Stop complaining, a-hole Mission people.
Julian Marks’ articles always feel as if they were written in a vacuum with little to no attention to the historic, cultural or economic forces at play in this neighborhood and on this block specifically. What is the purpose of a Latin American district? Why was it established in the first place? Therein lies the missing piece to this rather simplistic article.
I do think you have a point that there’s a broader context, but looking at how that context plays out in reality as applied to a specific situation is important too. Yes, the Mission is changing, and a lot of people don’t want buildings torn down and replaced with condos and long-term residents displaced. But what Arguello is actually doing is running a racket premised on the assumption that it’s possible to freeze time and that the neighborhood has always been monocultural. Anybody who is not Latino is threatened. A blanket policy of boycotts for any business that takes over a space post-eviction is absurd. Sometimes, businesses just close, for all sorts of reasons, and nobody elected Arguello to be the sole decider of who is permitted to replace them.
Welcome to the neighborhood, Cinderella! I will support your bakery fully, since I love pirogies, but also and especially because the 24th Street Latino Cultural District spokespeople do NOT speak for me, a 25 year Mission resident. Seriously, I’m going to have to up my “dining out” budget, just to throw extra support to any business being boycotted by the 24th Street mafia. Don’t sweat it, Cinderella. At this point, Arguello and his gang are so out of touch with the Mission that any boycott they organize will end up bringing you more business, not less.
Joe, well said. 100% support this.
Don Enrique trotted through the plaza on his trusty steed, Guardián, greeting everyone whom he passed, Jose the barber, Isabel the seamstress, Julio the cobbler, his handsome face and strong handshake providing them all the reassurance they needed to peacefully ply their trade in the village’s center. It was a fine morning and Don Enrique was content as he swayed back and forth among the stalls, gracefully weaving his way through the crowds of people who were eagerly filling their bags with the local tradespeople’s wares and produce. His heart filled with the joy and warmth of a million suns as he rode through the thriving community, calling out cheerfully to the scampering children as they played. But suddenly, a cloud shifted as he came upon the tidy fruit and vegetable stand that supplied the village with so many fresh and healthy things to eat. Without prompting from Don Enrique, Guardián stopped and stamped his hoof uneasily, shaking his head and giving a snort as if in warning. “Doña Maria,” Don Enrique said, addressing the stand’s proprietress, “Why are you crying?” “Oh Don Enrique,” Doña Maria replied, the tears streaming down her brosy cheeks, “Have you not heard? It is the pirogis . . . they have come.” Just then another woman emerged from the shadows at the back of the stand; it was Doña Hortencia, Doña Maria’s mother, one of the village’s wisest and most trusted inhabitants. “It is true, Don Enrique; what Maria says is the truth. And it is not only the pirogis, but also the fried piroshkis,” her voice now a haunted whisper. “But where, how . . . ?”, intoned Don Enrique, his eyes filled with a mixture of anger and incredulity. “In Doña Victoria’s bakery, or at least what used to be . . . it is gone now.” Guardián stomped his hoof again and let out a low and mournful bray, his dark eyes and long lashes moist with emotion.
I grew up in the Mission and there were people of ALL cultures represented throughout it. Many of the store owners in the Mission were Russian. So to say that the Mission was always “exclusively” latino is incorrect. I grew up with a wealth of different cultures WELCOMED in my neighborhood. I no longer live in the Mission, but this is NOT the culture I remember. We welcomed newcomers and did not backlash against people who were doing honest business (which is as it seems with the owner of Cinderella). The founders of La Victoria allowed it to dwindle and shuttered it themselves due to family turmoil. They lost their flavor and lost their clientele. People who left the Mission would STILL go visit their shop on the weekends even years after they had left. The bread lost its quality and inflated its price, so it wasn’t sustaining themselves. They started making CUPCAKES! I mean COME ON! Is that part of the historic latino culture? No. Having a dedicated boycott of a small SF legacy institution is terrible and will not save the culture of the Mission. You don’t fight race based discrimination with further race based discrimination! If you miss the Mission panaderias, come to Oakland, that’s where they all moved.
Being from the Mission you know quite well that the majority are Latino. Statistics validate that.
Bake everything from both culture s I know, I have.
Erick Arguello’s behavior should be considered a hate crime — there couldn’t be a clearer example of bigoted, nativist bullying.
Gross.
It’s not like the new owner is planning to tear down La Victoria for luxury condos. The new owner is trying to continue La Victoria’s business as a bakery, even continuing as a panaderia. La Victoria had hosted non-Latino businesses, and made sourdough bread and bagels, realizing that a panaderia alone couldn’t support the large space. The new owner is using the ovens for his broader bakery business while attempting to serve those who patronized the panaderia. The new owner is in the Mission’s tradition of immigrant-owned small businesses. The difference is the new owner is not Latino. A boycott merely on the grounds of the new owner’s ethnicity is doomed to failure.
Actually yes they did discuss condo’s. So many posts on this thread are assumptions based on the article. If it weren’t for Calle 24 the Mission would be just another bland, boring, neighborhood.
Perfectly said, thank you
Sad and disturbing. Calle 24 are a bunch of extortionists. I’m sure they are looking for a “donation” to their organization thay would make this all go away.
Arguello sounds like a fun guy. My way or the highway. Is this what progressive, tolerant, multicultural San Francisco has come to? A battle between the self proclaimed latino “neighborhood gatekeeper” – think of the irony on that one, and on the other side a Russian Jewish refugee baker. You just can’t make this stuff up. Perhaps Arguello’s next bright idea will be to put up a wall around the Mission to keep the non-Latinos out, and keep the Latino population inside from leaving for whatever reason.
Just ignore Calle 24. We are really lucky to get a mom and pop bakery in that spot. The owners sound cool. Looking forward to it!
As someone who is looking forward to shopping here, I’m not sure 48 retail location (49 when they open here) is what I would consider ‘mom and pop’.
http://cinderellabakery.com/retail-stores/
Hello Ivan.
This appears to be a list of stores where you can buy Cinderella’s products. I have personally bought a loaf of their bread at the Parkside Farmers Market on Taraval. They do not own these stores.
Best,
JE
Nonetheless they are not a small mom and
pop store.
Not sure what your criteria is. It’s a family-owned legacy business with one other branch that’s only under lease for three more years.
Best,
JE
Big fan of history much Mr Downing?
Wow…
Born and raised here 61 years ago .YEAH I know the history of the neighborhood
You don’t read very well if that’s what you got out of the article.
Seriously …. I think there is a scary inner monologue going on there.
It’s time Arguello and the others involved with Calle 24 face reality. The reality is coming in many SF neighborhoods. Arguello, et at, can’t stop it.
Change is good. Don’t be a bully!
As a resident from just down the street – I agree completely with the previous two posts. If La Victoria was evicted by Starbucks, then yeah I would join the protests. There was some family drama.. the business was closed (and wasn’t even owned by the original owners) and the family sold the building. I will happily walk through any sad protest to patronize this business. Calle 24 cannot be a museum to the past full of fading/empy storefronts.
What a shame that Erick Arguello has such hate in his heart towards anyone who isn’t like him! And indeed, shame on him and Calle 24 for taking out their frustrations over a family squabble on a completely innocent new owner who did nothing wrong, and is even trying to reach out to the community by hiring La Victoria bakers and selling Mexican baked goods!
I, for one, will relish this new addition to the neighborhood, since it will be a taste of my ethnic background! You see, Mr. Arguello, this neighborhood is and has always been more diverse than you would like everyone to believe. You and your organisation may try to bully everyone who isn’t exactly like you, but that’s not going to stop change, and in the end, those you oppose will have zero sympathy for the causes you promote, because you are behaving like a schoolyard bully!
Over 8000 Latinos and 2000 homeless children are the ones who have been “bullied” out and preservation of the community’s culture is what’s needed. The new owner is not completely innocent they have been conspiring for months. ANyone who lives in the Mission and claims they don’t love the Latino culture is either lying or in denial. WHy else would they pay more in rents than most other places.
maybe if arguello was as active in getting ppl to shop at la victoria’s bakery, they would have made enough money to have stayed put. clearly, if a different type of bakery can make it – and this experienced owner of cinderalla thinks he can – then la victoria should havre tried harder. or, arguello should have flexed his muscles and gotten others to go to victoria’s. they didn’t make it because amoung hispanics like everyone else, super sweet, super white flour baked goods are not that appealing. … but just dare and talk about the elephant in the room.
La Victoria had plenty of business not to mention putting in nearly one hundred thousand dollars in renovations throughout the years. Curious why the bakery was the only one evicted. Jaime and Cinderella have been planning to gentrify the spot on the downlow. The owner refused to meet with the community and he has the nerve to pull the Russian war victim card.
Wow. I understand that the latino community in the mission feels pressure, but this sounds like what southern all-white neighborhoods used to do when minorities threatened to move in. Just because it is more “politically correct” for a latino community in SF to do this doesn’t make it less despicable. Sounds like bigotry mixed with mafia tactics. And the business being replaced was evicted by the latino family that owned it, not by some “evil” newcomer (god forbid an ethically incorrect person evict a failing business!)
This is peak political correctness run amok as it tips into fascism. I will make a point to support this new bakery.
Good points. How refreshing it is to read good sense.
Exactly!!
Bigotry? How bout the 10,000 Latinos evicted out of the neighborhood. STFU
Victimhood much? The evil landlords in this story are THE LATINOS, you race-baiting simpleton.
HOw is that? Explain.
Haha! Spot on!
This is deeply disturbing behavior out of Arguello and Calle 24. I’m all for maintaining the character of the neighborhood, and I’m saddened to lose La Victoria.
But this is just too much. If there is any villain here, it is to be found in the family that evicted its own family.
It’s true: Arguello won’t get much support here, and what support he finds will look no different than those Trump types who yearn endlessly for the good old days, future be dammed.
He’s got my support. YOu can’t say your sad to see La Victoria leave the complain about attempts to keep them in the Mission. Those “good old days” are what made the Mission one of the most desired place to live in the country TODAY.
Good points.
“The fact that La Victoria’s eviction was instigated by the Maldonado family whose son owned the bakery, did not matter, Arguello said.”
Sheer LUNACY! Seriously. Rather than threaten a new business, maybe Arguello should mediated the Maldonado familia’s dispute.
Continuing to make gentrification about ethnicity vs. economic “justice” will only hasten what the Calle 24 mobsters are trying to stop.
Good points.