ELLENWOOD, Ga. — What began as an act of hate has turned into an overwhelming show of community support for a Black-owned farmers market in metro Atlanta.
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Customers lined up Friday at Atlanta Harvest in Ellenwood after the business shared on social media that someone carved a racial slur into one of its watermelons.
Co-owner Eliyahu Ben Asa said he discovered the vandalism last month after delivering watermelons to a local community center.
“When I got out of the car and took a look at the watermelon, that’s when I saw the racial slur carved into it,” Ben Asa said. “I was taken aback. I was very surprised.”
A photo posted by the business, with the slur blurred, showed the word carved into the watermelon. Rather than respond with anger, Ben Asa said the business chose to continue its mission of providing fresh food to the community.
“We’re just going to keep doing what we’re doing,” Ben Asa said. “Our work is too important. The food that we provide to the community is too important.”
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The social media post quickly spread, prompting customers from across Georgia to make the trip to support the locally owned business.
Stephonie Wiley drove about an hour and a half from Barnesville to shop at the market.
“We saw it on social media, and one, it’s Black-owned, and we definitely want to support our Black-owned businesses,” Wiley said.
She left with bags of fresh produce, including plums, sweet potatoes and what she called “a big watermelon.”
Other customers echoed the same message.
“It was demoralizing, and it saddened us to the point where we wanted to support,” customer William Jones said.
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By Friday afternoon, long lines stretched outside the market as shoppers stocked up on fresh fruits and vegetables.
Ben Asa said the response has reinforced the business’s commitment to serving the community.
“This wasn’t something that I felt was necessarily a threat against my life,” he said. “It was just somebody doing some evil that wanted to spread some hate.”
Ben Asa says they are planning to file a police report.
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