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Luigi Petrone, the owner of Tutto Pazzo in Huntington Village, received backlash after he posted a video on Monday, June 1 of a group protesting the death of George Floyd, calling them names and mocking them.
“There’s a bunch of kids … little punks,” he said. “(They) look like little animals … little savages.”
Petrone went on to say that “we were ready, we don’t joke around. They know if they come into Huntington, they’re going to have a problem…all of them.”
“They came in, and they came out. A bunch of them saw us with a bunch of watermelons we were going to throw at them,” he continued. “All the watermelons. You can’t mess with us people in Huntington.”
Petrone’s video went viral and was widely panned, prompting him to release a new video where he apologized, saying he was “truly embarrassed and ashamed by (his) words and actions.”
“There are no excuses and no words to express the depth of my regret,” he said. “I recognize how wrong I was and how much pain and anger I have caused this great community I love and cherish.
“I also am aware this reaction has extended further outside just this community, and I do not expect for a simple apology to be the answer, rather a starting point for conversation and changes I intend to make, in my personal life and in the Huntington community,” he added.
The protest that drew Petrone’s ire involved approximately 100 people who demonstrated peacefully, rallying from Huntington Town Hall to Veterans Plaza, where they took a knee around the flag pole and had a moment of silence for Floyd.
Petrone said he plans to meet with community leaders to create a plan and way to move forward, a process that has already reportedly started. In the short-term, Petrone said that he will be taking a step back and allowing his brother, Joseph to take over his ownership stake.
“It is with sincere hope that over time, I will be able to re-build trust with so many people I have hurt,” he said. “I take full responsibility and understand the severity of my words and actions knowing that repairing the damage will be a long road.
“It is only over time that you will see my commitment to change,” he added. “Another first step is to work with my brother so that he can take over my ownership interest in Tutto Pazzo, and I can start my journey of educating myself and growing from this devastating experience.”
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