A DC pizza chain's ad for its new dessert, named after the city's former mayor, was slammed by activists and council members earlier this week, forcing responses from the chain's CEO and spokesperson.
The Washing D.C.-based pizza chain &pizza recently started selling "Marion Berry Knots" and promoting it in ads that read "These knots will blow you away." A press release for the dessert stated there was enough powdered sugar to "even force the DEA to look twice," according to reporting by WDCW.
The chain is seemingly alluding to the city's former Mayor Marion Barry, who was caught smoking crack cocaine and arrested by the FBI on drug charges in 1990.
On Monday, Berry's wife, Cora Masters Barry, said she was never contacted about the dessert's name and deemed the marketing stunt "racist and disrespectful."
"I just think it's racist," Barry told WDCW. "In this city, it is outrageously racist. You can print that. It's racist and disrespectful."
Two council members also spoke out in defense of Barry. Trayon White called for a boycott of the chain, writing on Instagram the dessert was a "shameless and tasteless exploitation of Marion S. Barry's legacy," and Christina Henderson called it "tone deaf" and "disrespectful," according to WDCW.
The chain's CEO Mike Burns initially attempted to obscure the allegations by claiming they were "talking about a marionberry, that's spelled with an 'e," and said the desserts were delicious.
But by Wednesday afternoon, after a group of activists held a press conference outside an &pizza location, demanding the item be removed from the menu, the chain apologized for the item and its accompanying language.
"We hear the D.C. community and have removed the Marion Berry Knots from our menu effective immediately. Those who know the &pizza brand know we stand for philanthropy, activism and societal betterment in the communities we serve."
The chain, which dubbed itself an "edgy brand known for being risk takers," said they were trying to be humorous, but was "regrettably off the mark." The statement also admitted to parodying the former mayor's substance abuse, which they recognized was "wrong."
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