Arizona print shop owner rejects College Republicans’ white American signs
Jim Torgeson, owner of an Arizona print shop and a Republican, refused to produce “Protect White Americans” signs ordered by College Republicans United (CRU), saying the design promoted hate and could put people in danger. The dispute has prompted accusations of political inconsistency from the group, while Torgeson says he does not want his business involved in messages intended to divide or incite people.
The order was for about 16 posters, each featuring a white family and measuring four by eight feet. Torgeson said he had also declined an earlier design that made an inappropriate reference to a transgender candidate; he said that candidate’s signs did not contain hate. The article reports that CRU leader Kevin Decuyper had previously made ethno-nationalist comments online, which he has since distanced himself from, and that the wider organisation promotes mass deportations and texts including antisemitic fabrications.
In short
- Arizona shop owner refused an order for 16 political signs.
- He said the design promoted hate and could put people in danger.
- The group has criticised the refusal as politically inconsistent.
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The case for
A business owner may reasonably decline work that would make his shop appear to endorse a message he believes promotes racial hostility or could endanger people. Torgeson’s position is that accepting the order would implicate his business in divisive advocacy, and refusing it is a matter of conscience rather than party politics.
The case against
A printer may reasonably argue that refusing a political order because of its viewpoint applies a different standard to customers with opposing views and limits their ability to communicate. CRU could see the refusal as inconsistent with serving political clients generally, especially if the shop accepts other controversial messages; that concern does not depend on endorsing the signs’ message.
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Originally published by Daily Mail as “Racism storm erupts as shop refuses to print signs saying ‘Protect White Americans’ because owner claims the message is ‘hate speech’”.