On Wednesday, Alan Delsitz shared a video with the Daily Call News Foundation that depicted a vendor at a farmer’s market in Martha’s Vineyard admitting he declined to sell pierogies due to “politics.”
Dershowitz mentioned during a recent episode of “Dershow” that he’s considering legal action against pierogi vendors in West Tisbury, Massachusetts, who, allegedly, refused service due to his political stance and representation. Dershowitz, who notably represented President Trump in his first impeachment trial, has been critical of the Biden administration’s efforts to pursue criminal charges against Trump.
A brief video shared by Dershowitz shows the vendor acknowledging that he doesn’t support Dershowitz’s political activities.
“Yeah, I don’t like your politics,” the vendor, Bender, stated while preparing the pierogies.
“I’ve been visiting the vineyards for about 40 to 50 years now,” Dershowitz recalled on the podcast, mentioning his routine Wednesday visits to the farmers’ market, where he even purchased a shirt showcasing the market’s previous location.
Throughout his extensive legal career, representing various clients including O.J. Simpson, Dershowitz recalled his fondness for the local farmers’ market experience while waiting for his order of pierogies to be ready.
The West Tisbury Farmers Market and Good Pierogi did not respond to multiple comment requests from DCNF.
Describing the incident, Dershowitz shared, “I approached and asked for six pierogies. The response was, ‘No, you’ve used up your pierogi.’ I pressed, ‘What does that mean?’ to which he replied, ‘I don’t approve of your politics, so I won’t sell them to you.’ I inquired further, ‘What about my politics do you disagree with?’ but he wouldn’t clarify.”
The West Tisbury Police Department later provided a statement regarding the situation.
A Reserve Officer, Nate Vieira, was called to assist after the market manager expressed frustrations about the vendor’s political views. Vieira managed to diffuse the situation, allowing everyone to part ways amicably.
Dershowitz alleged that during a prior visit to the farmers’ market, he wore a shirt that identified him as a “proud American Zionist,” which the vendor apparently noticed. He compared his experience to a 2018 Supreme Court case involving a Colorado baker, Jack Phillips, who faced legal scrutiny for rejecting orders based on his beliefs.
“In that Supreme Court case, the distinction was made about the nature of cake decoration as artistic expression. But pierogi? That’s not an art form,” he argued, recalling how he simply wanted to purchase a set of six.
Dershowitz claimed he communicated effectively with the vendor while also polling other market-goers about the situation. He noted, “When police arrived, I pointed out it wasn’t private property. The officers affirmed the vendor’s right to refuse service, but I countered that if he were to refuse service to black customers, the law would intervene. He claimed there wasn’t any tape of that.”
In aligning his experience with the broader social dynamics of Martha’s Vineyard, Dershowitz described the atmosphere as reminiscent of high school cliques, noting that friends had warned him about the social repercussions of associating with him on the island. Another acquaintance, he said, might not openly oppose him but would consider inviting him “social suicide.”
