Vandals target Hamilton’s newest coffee shop
- Robert
- 24 Jul 2018
Barton Street has been hit with another anti-gentrification vandalism spree. This time, vandals used wheat paste to glue threatening signage onto newer storefronts. One of the stores hit was Stir It Up! Inc. Cafe — Hamilton’s newest coffee shop. Instead of backing down, the owner of Stir It Up! has an important message to share with the perpetrators.
The sign posted on their storefront window reads: “Who did you displace when you opened this coffee shop? Gentrification IS violence. DEFEND BARTON”. While the shop owner could have scraped off the poster and glue, they took the opportunity to write back to the vandals.
Using point form, the owner shared that they were born and raised in Hamilton’s North End, have been a bartender in the city for 30 years, and their husband has worked at Dofasco for 40 years. They concluded by writing that people should get their facts straight and that beautification is not gentrification.
The owner also addressed that their shop didn’t displace anyone — the building’s last tenant was a t-shirt shop. The shop in question, Vagabond Saints, jumped on Twitter to clear the air and state that Stir It Up! didn’t displace them. After Vagabond Saints moved out, the storefront sat empty for months until Stir It Up! came and opened.
We would like to point out that we were not displaced from that unit. We left because there was no business there for us. People avoided Barton and so we moved to a better area where we were seen. Perhaps if the vandals cared and shopped with us we wouldn’t have had to move.
— Vagabond Saints™ (@Vagabondsaints) July 21, 2018
The most surprising part of the vandals’ signage is their suggestion to graffiti, litter, vandalize and squat to stop gentrification. Their signage also suggests for people to shop at locally owned businesses.
What the vandals fail to realize time and time again is that they are exclusively vandalizing locally owned businesses.
From this spring’s Locke Street vandalism spree to what’s currently happening on Barton Street, Hamilton has seen enough anti-gentrification propaganda. Empty shops are being filled by honest, hardworking individuals with entrepreneurial dreams. Hamilton is a community that cares; we’re stronger than a handful of vandals.
What do you think about the recent vandalism that has taken place on Barton Street? Let us know in the comments.
Images of Barton Street’s vandalism signage provided by @JoeyColeman, @Barton_Village, and Stir It Up! Inc. Cafe.
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