Spanish McDonald's ad prompts talk of a boycott; Bergen town's mayor calls billboard 'divisive'

STAR LEDGER ^ | Saturday, July 08, 2006 | ANA M. ALAYA Star-Ledger Staff

[Liz]

The mayor of a small Bergen County, New Jersey town is calling for a McDonald's boycott if the fast-food chain does not take down a Spanish-language billboard.... Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan said the advertisement is "offensive" and "divisive"......"The true things that bind us together as neighbors and community is our belief in the American flag and our common language," Lonegan said. "And when McDonald's sends a different message, that we're going to be different now, that causes resentment."

Representatives for McDonald's and CBS Outdoor in New York, the company that owns the billboard on River Road in Bogota, defended the advertisement....said Jodi Senese, executive vice president for marketing for CBS Outdoor.

Jennifer Nagy, a marketing manager of McDonald's NY Metro Region, stood by the advertisement.

Lonegan was dismissive of the statement yesterday. "I think that their boilerplate press release is totally meaningless," Lonegan said. "It shows their utter disregard for this community."

Martin Perez, president of the Latino Leadership Alliance of New Jersey, an umbrella group of 250 Hispanic organizations, said there is an "anti-Latino" sentiment behind the opposition to the advertisement.

Deborah Jacobs, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey, said McDonald's has a first amendment right to advertise in Spanish.

[JoeSixPack1]

If it wasn't for the fact that I haven't bought anything from McD's in over 15 years, I'd boycott them! :-)

[gondramB]

>>I'll repeat what I said earlier:

The Melting Pot made America "one nation." Diversity seeks to divide it, one against the other.<<

You've got a good point - but there has always been some diversity.

[Holden Magroin]

Look, I think every last illegal alien should be deported, and President Bush ought to be impeached for derilection of duty, but I don't get why people are making a fuss over an ad for coffee.

[raybbr]

You're being very quotable today. Thank you.

Every one of Liz's posts are memorable. That's why I look forward to them.

Thank you, Liz.

Ray

[Liz]

Standing ovation for poster and postee.

[gondramB]

>>As I posted earlier, launching the ad campaign now<<

Well this is a bad time to start advertising in Spanish - you are certainly right about that.

Are you sure they just started though? - mcDonalds are the people who sell wine French McD's and don't sell beef at all in areas with many Hindus.

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

And just how should that happen in this instance?

Uh, how about just not patronizing McDonald's quietly and without fanfare.

[gondramB]

>>BECASUE WE ARE IN AMERICA. In addition THE corporation is being RACIST for IT IS choosing to communicate and pander to only one ethnic group. ENGLISH is the only language that cannot be associated with any one genetic race. Unlike Spanish which is only associated with Mexicans.<<

I think McDonalds panders (if that's what you want to call it) to lots of people - they sell wine where there is a local demand, they sell beer some places and some places they sell no beef - a McDonald's with no beef.

They are a for-profit corporation - they adapt to the local market.

[Liz]

Aw, you're just saying that 'cause it's true (grin).

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

Those who defend the lawlessness that the illegals wreak upon us, our culture and our country...ALWAYS have a dog in the fight, but never admit it.

I don't like illegals, I want them out and I also believe that multicultralism will be the dealth knell for this country.

That said, what McDonald's is doing here is no different when they have ads supporting Black History month and featured hip-hop artists and entertainers in their commercials. So having a Spanish ad or a commerical featuring J.Lo doesn't necessarily mean the End Times are nigh.

[Liz]

LOL----good one.

[Balding_Eagle]

Uh, how about just not patronizing McDonald's quietly and without fanfare.

Oh, come on.....you can't be serious. They have somewhere north of what? how many million? customers every day.

I was expecting a serious idea from you of how I can protest this sign in a dignified way.

I called Mc D's customer complaint line, and rationaly explained to the nice person at the other end that an American institution like McDonalds shouldn't be involved in Balkanizing our country.

That my idea of dignified, what's yours?

[gondramB]

>>Sure, but not while actively aiding illegals aliens and performing acts of sedition.<<

1. Lots of people in the U.S. speak spanish - bilingual people, 2nd or 3rd generation legal immigrants, tourists and business people from Spanish speaking countries. We learned in marketing class that ethnic minorites respond to ads that reference their culture.

2. Are you suggesting that Restaurants are responsible for the residency status of their customers? Before you can do that congress would have to pass a law.

3. Advertising to a language that 10% of the people in the country makes sense on a limited bases - its like adds targeted at blacks or gays -smart business. Heck, add those three minorities together and you've got 30% of the population.

[Liz]

And this invasion of spanish speakers is not costing Americans their jobs??

Good point.

The street protestors--carrying Mexican flags--and the Mexican government share the same goals: legalize Mexican illegal aliens and keep the borders open.

The Mexican government sees this as a way to relieve economic pressure on their government to reform their economy....on the backs of US citizens.

Mexico's leaders work to retain the loyalty of the immigrant mobs so that, even if our laws allow them to become American citizens, they retain their loyalty to Mexico, are subjects of the Mexican government, and pledge fealty to Mexico.

In the Mexican Congress, it was recently announced that a document would be drafted, to show support for the protest marches in our country.

The Mexican government published advertisements in leading American newspapers calling for the legalization of illegal immigrants in the United States, and "a far-reaching guest workers scheme."

Not only that, said the ads, but "in order for a US guest workers program to be viable, Mexico should participate in its design, management, supervision and evaluation."

[A. Goodwin]

You're right - you and any other citizen can bitch at, criticize, and boycott a private company to your heart's content. The problem I have with this story is that the person calling for the boycott is the mayor, acting in his official capacity. And as beneficial as I think it is to have a common language, this sort of governmental interference in the affairs of a private business is more troubling than the 'problem' it purports to solve.

[Liz]

"The men who do not become Americans and nothing else are hyphenated Americans; and there ought to be no room for them in this country.

The man who calls himself an American citizen and who yet shows by his actions that he is primarily the citizen of a foreign land, plays a thoroughly mischievous part in the life of our body politic.

He has no place here; and the sooner he returns to the land to which he feels his real heart-allegiance, the better it will be for every good American.

There is no such thing as a hyphenated American who is a good American. The only man who is a good American is the man who is an American and nothing else...." - Theodore Roosevelt

[Ben Ficklin]

Last December, 82% of the House Democrats voted against the House enforcement bill. I don't have the numbers/percentages on the republican vote but I am confident that they voted for that bill at a higher percentage.

In the Senate, 77% of the republicans voted against the reform bill while 89% of the dems voted for.

[John Robertson]

"I don't like illegals, I want them out and I also believe that multicultralism will be the dealth knell for this country.

That said, what McDonald's is doing here is no different when they have ads supporting Black History month and featured hip-hop artists and entertainers in their commercials. So having a Spanish ad or a commerical featuring J.Lo doesn't necessarily mean the End Times are nigh."

It's multicultarism that gave us Black History Month [why is it that their only accomplishments happened in the month of February?...joke], but African-Americans are... AMERICANS! McDonald's can do whatever it wants to do, of course, but what in less fractious times would be simply "niche marketing" now seems at best an indirect endorsement of the illegal subculture that is working into most parts of our country and culture.

[Liz]

I would discount Dec 2005 votes. Voting patterns are more relevant after the infamous April 2006 street protests that opened the eyes of all Americans.