Vendor Refuses Sale Due to Politics at Martha’s Vineyard Market
Recently, Alan Delsitz shared a video with the Daily Call News Foundation that features a vendor at the Martha’s Vineyard Farmers Market. This vendor openly stated he wouldn’t sell pierogis due to “politics.”
On a recent episode of his podcast, “Dershow,” Dershowitz announced his intention to take legal action against pierogi vendors in West Tisbury, Massachusetts, who he claims refused to serve him based on his political background. Dershowitz, known for representing former President Donald Trump in his first impeachment trial, has been critical of the Biden administration and its attempts to pursue criminal cases against Trump.
The brief clip provided by Dershowitz shows the vendor confirming his lack of approval regarding Dershowitz’s political stance. “Yeah, I don’t like your politics,” Bender said while preparing pierogis.
Dershowitz shared that he has been visiting Martha’s Vineyard for decades and enjoys the farmers’ market. “Every Wednesday, I go to the farmers’ market. I bought this shirt there; it even features the market’s old location,” he recalled on the podcast.
During his time as a lawyer, Dershowitz has represented various clients, including O.J. Simpson. He expressed his fondness for shopping for pierogis while waiting for another order at the market.
Both the West Tisbury Farmers Market and Good Pierogi did not respond to requests for comments from DCNF.
Describing his experience, Dershowitz recounted, “I went there and asked for six pierogis. But they said no. They claimed I had used up my limit, and then stated they wouldn’t sell to me. I asked why, and he said it was because he didn’t approve of my politics. When I pressed for specifics, he wouldn’t share.”
The West Tisbury Police Department released a statement about the situation. Officer Nate Vieira, who was present, mentioned they handled the matter without escalating it further. Ultimately, the involved parties went their separate ways.
Dershowitz noted that during a previous visit, he wore a shirt proclaiming him a “proud American Zionist,” which the vendor may have noticed. He drew parallels between this incident and a 2018 Supreme Court case involving a baker refusing to make a cake for a same-sex couple.
“In that case, the Court distinguished between the sale of cakes and artistic expression in cake decoration. Pierogi, however, isn’t really art. I merely wanted to buy six,” he clarified.
Dershowitz mentioned he had a reasonable discussion with the vendor and even asked other market attendees for their thoughts on the incident.
When police arrived, they indicated it was private property and the vendor had the right to choose whom to serve. Dershowitz pointed out that if the vendor refused to serve individuals based on race, it would be a different situation, to which the vendor seemingly had no response.
In the podcast, he likened the social atmosphere in Martha’s Vineyard to a “high school,” sharing that friends warned him about the repercussions of being seen with a prominent lawyer. Despite not being directly opposed, another acquaintance remarked that inviting Dershowitz over would be “social suicide.”
