A Tennessee pizzeria owner has refused to serve National Guard members and took a stand against the Trump administration, The Guardian reported on Tuesday.
Miles Tamboli, owner of Tamboli’s Pasta & Pizza, drew a line in early July: no more serving the National Guard troops the Trump administration sent into Memphis, a deployment the president claimed would drive down crime, according to The Guardian. He posted a video announcing the ban just days after troops killed two city residents, pushing the death toll to four since the initiative began in the city in September.
Since his public statement, he has faced death threats, and he and his family have temporarily relocated from their home.
It's also led to a "buy-cott" in the community, after local activist Hunter Demster featured Tamboli's post and included the pizzeria in a list of businesses banning the National Guard taskforce and encouraging locals to support them. The move follows right-wing accounts Libs of TikTok and Fox News Radio host Todd Starnes calling for boycotts of the restaurant.
So far, the response has been long lines and a packed pizzeria.
Tamboli has had to face right-wing "review bombing" on Google, including violent threats, and has called detractors "unhinged."
He told The Guardian that he engaged with one right-wing follower and thanked them for the publicity around his business.
"The person responded, attaching a screenshot of his conversation with Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence chatbot, Grok," The Guardian reported.
"He had asked Grok if it was possible that Tamboli’s was doing well this week, and Grok said no. And he took a screenshot of that and sent it back to me, calling me a liar," Tamboli told The Guardian. "I feel like that tells you everything you need to know about this group of people and their hold on reality."