Looting Decimates Small Businesses in Ferguson
Kerry Picket, Breitbart, August 20, 2014
It’s not easy running a business with riots going on. In the ten days since Michael Brown was shot in Ferguson, Missouri, the small businesses that line the streets have suffered a major financial blow from the constant rioting, vandalism, and looting, owners said.
Looters and vandals have smashed windows of store fronts, spray painted graffiti, stolen property, and burned down businesses. Some stores re-opened with plywood plugging up their smashed windows. The words “open for business” are often spray painted on the plywood, but many customers are too afraid to even come.
One such sign for “Yolo! Boutique” says in spray-painted letters the store is “OPEN!” and instructs would-be looters the facility is “BLACK OWNED.”
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“Our patients are canceling left and right because they don’t want to come on our street,” the owner of a medical facility told Breitbart News. “It’s affecting our bottom line for the past week. We’re going on the 8th day now.”
The same business owner was concerned about releasing her businesses name for fear of retribution by protesters who may burn down the facility like she says they had already done to a friend’s place of business. {snip}
“I have the best insurance but I heard rumors they may try to play the social unrest card and say that I’m not covered and say that this is a civil unrest and therefore I’m not covered,” Dyan said.
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