Peter Schorsch
Protesters in St. Petersburg Wednesday night gathered outside a hip coffee shop to protest not George Floyd or police brutality, but a lawmaker more than 100 miles away.
Gathered in front of Intermezzo Coffee & Cocktails in downtown St. Petersburg, protesters targeted Howey-In-The-Hills Republican Rep. Anthony Sabatini.
Sabatini’s brother, Jarrett Sabatini, runs the coffee shop.
“Don’t forget his racist brother. We’re going to stand outside his business until he decides to take a real stance. His stance is neutrality,” protesters reportedly said, according to Tampa Bay Times reporter Josh Solomon.
Let’s get something clear. Anthony Sabatini is a loathsome individual. Google him.
He entered the political fray under almost immediate scrutiny for dressing in blackface in high school, and then, with a case of “I totally missed the point,” defended his youthful choice as one not based in race at all.
He dismissed arguments about confederate monuments as “political theater” in a liberal agenda.
If his tweets are any indication, he thinks aiming AR-15 semi-automatic rifles at protesters is A-OK. Why? Because those protesters are “thugs.”
So yeah, George Floyd protesters, be super pissed at Rep. Sabatini.
But should the sins of the brother hurt a local small business that has nothing to do with a lawmaker other than familial relation? I’d think not.
Anthony Sabatini would say otherwise, but his short tenure in Tallahassee suggests he’s not the greatest friend to the African American community.
While other conservatives are supporting peaceful protests and demanding justice for Floyd, Sabatini is tweeting threats. Jarrett Sabatini is just brewing some coffee and serving up craft beer.
The quote Solomon reported seems to suggest Jarrett Sabatini is complacent in his brother’s dangerous rhetoric. Maybe that’s so. Maybe it’s not.
Maybe they’re not speaking. Maybe Jarrett gets into fights with his brother over dinner about whether black protesters tired of being gunned down for no real reason other than the color of their skin should be met with empathy and action, not military-style assault weapons.
Maybe Jarrett doesn’t like to be in the limelight like his fiery brother.
The bottom line is, you don’t know.
Intermezzo is a locally owned business that just happens to be run by the brother of a notorious lawmaker.
Protesting in front of his shop, potentially wreaking financial havoc on a business already reeling from a global pandemic, seems pretty low on the totem pole of ways to get the point across.
If Anthony Sabatini is the one you have a problem with, take that to his doorstep.
These protests are an important moment in history. The message about rampant police brutality and racial inequality are crucial fights that demand action.
Camping out in front of a coffee shop isn’t going to do much to get the desired result. In the meantime, maybe you could ask to speak to the manager.
2 comments
TG
June 4, 2020 at 10:47 pm
The brother isn’t the issue if he’s neutral or not involved–fair point. However… looks like he gave his brother’s campaign $100 back in March. Not a huge amount mind you, but that came after how many stories on Anthony’s antics, quite a few documented on this very site? Jarrett can’t pretend to not know what his brother’s tactics and stances are at this point. Knowing all of that (and likely much more being family), he made the choice to offer his support. Could give more money down the line, who knows.
Does that mean his business should be looted or destroyed? Of course not. But when a company owner (even of a small business) backs a politician with objectionable or extremist views, attention and peaceful protest is fair game.
DWB
June 9, 2020 at 9:25 am
When I worked at Intermezzo I witnessed multiple occasions of blatant aggression towards people who didn’t fit his view of what was acceptable in Intermezzo. I was asked on more than one occasion not to encourage their patronage because they were “weird” or “losers” or because he didn’t like them and they made the business look bad, not because they were bad people but because they didn’t fit the intermezzo narrative or “image”, which is mostly white. The breaking point for me was when a disabled black man came to the bar when I was working with Geoff. Jarrett’s brother also happened to be there, Jarrett too. The man was in his late fifties maybe sixties and had some sort of obvious speech impediment or hearing disability. I asked how I could help him and the best he could do was try and sign to me. There was an obvious bridge of communication to cross. After realizing quickly that I couldn’t figure out exactly what he was trying to say I gestured “beer?” The best I could. For some reason I couldn’t find a damn menu at the moment. He shook his head yes. As I started to pour him a taste of a lager Anthony Sabitini walked over to him. I thought at first he was just being helpful but quickly realized he was belittling the man and telling him he was t allowed at the bar. He put his hand on his collarbone and started to squeeze it. Geoff and I were like “Hey guys we got this he’s alright” The guy just wanted a beer. Eventually the man took out his wallet and showed Anthony his ID and about $7 in cash. I was telling them to let up and trying to convince them the guy wasn’t drunk. The guy just kept insisting he just wanted to sit down and have a beer the only way he could, by flashing his money and ID. He was not a problem. Eventually Jarrett and Anthony walked the guy outside and he left without a struggle. He came back shortly though and sat right back down at the bar. He was obviously trying to prove his point now, he had been humiliated! Anthony came storming up again grabbed him by his shirt collar and aggressively threw him out. I quickly walked outside and got between them and just escorted the man away to avoid any further confrontation. I told the man sorry and I just felt so bad. Anthony just talked about how much of a piece of trash the guy was and Jarrett was just complicit. I’ll I could do was express how fucked I thought it was, but I was gaslighted. Jarrett does not debate his brother over dinner about black lives and how they matter.
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