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The owner of a local coffee shop ordered a group of pro-life advocates to leave after comparing them to the Ku Klux Klan.
According to video of the encounter, Jim Sheehan, owner of Wydaho Roasters Coffee House, approached members of the Campaign for Abortion Free Cities as they sat with drinks they had purchased and began their first meeting to organize an “Abortion Free Teton Valley” effort.
No one in the group wore political clothing or carried signs, aside from one person in a white hat with the initials “CK” for Charlie Kirk.
Sheehan told the group he did not want them meeting there.
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“Everybody is welcome, but I don’t want this group meeting here,” he said.
When Kristan Hawkins, CEO of Students for Life of America and Pro-Life Generation, explained they were holding their first meeting.
Sheehan replied, “I don’t care, go to the public library.”
Hawkins noted the group had already bought food and drinks.
Sheehan continued: “I did a lot of work to get people on the ballot so women would have the right to choose in the state of Idaho, and this is something I do not support, nor does my wife, and it’s our business, so we have that choice.”
When pressed on whether he was kicking them out, Sheehan compared the pro-life gathering to the KKK.
“It’s like, if the KKK asked to meet here, I would say no,” he said.
Hawkins asked if he viewed pro-lifers as similar to the KKK.
Sheehan answered, “In my world, it’s the same sort of concept.”
Hawkins later said: “They compared US to the KKK … even though Planned Parenthood’s founder, Margaret Sanger, spoke for the KKK. We paid for our food. We weren’t protesting or disrupting anyone. We were simply sitting together having a peaceful conversation. We were kicked out because we’re pro-life and work to protect babies.”
The coffee shop displayed a lawn sign reading “EVERYONE WELCOME” and had previously hosted a meet-and-greet for a Democratic Socialists of America candidate as well as a vigil for two left-wing activists killed while protesting Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
In a response to media inquiries, Sheehan said the group was not kicked out and claimed the video was selectively edited. He stated he had asked them the day before not to hold the meeting at the shop because he did not align with their agenda.
“I asked them to find another place to hold their meeting,” he said, adding that they ignored the request.
The incident prompted public criticism, with some customers leaving negative reviews and saying they would no longer patronize the business.
Hawkins said the group would continue its advocacy: “We aren’t backing down. The backlash only reminds us that we’re making an impact. We will keep showing up. We will keep speaking the truth. And we will keep fighting for Life.”
