ERIE, Mich. — A Muslim family is considering legal action against a farmer who hurled racist remarks at the family and accused them of stealing from his southeast Michigan farm.
Joe Mahmoud said Steve Elzinga, the owner of Erie Orchards and Cider Mill in Erie, Mich., rifled through his family's belongings and traumatized his three children after Elzinga stopped them as they were leaving the farm on Aug. 13.
Mahmoud said he and his family went to the farm because his daughters wanted to pick peaches, and they were told by a store employee that they could explore the grounds and take items from the orchard for free. Elzinga later told WTOL 11 that a false rumor had circulated that customers were allowed to pick fruit for free at his farm.
"I asked him if we find anything back there, can we bag it and pay for it, because the girls mostly wanted to go there for the experience," Mahmoud said. "So, we went out there we found some mostly rotted peaches, but the girls wanted them anyway."
Mahmoud said he paid $70 for other fruits, but not the peaches. As the family was leaving in their car, Elzinga stopped them. In a video uploaded to Facebook by Mahmoud, Elzinga calls himself a racist and claimed every Muslim person who visits the farm is a thief. He also searched their bags, including their diaper bag that was sitting next to Mahmoud's six-month-old daughter, and claimed he had called local law enforcement.
Through the anger and racism being directed toward him, Mahmoud said he feared for his and his family's safety in that moment.
"I was thinking of every worse possible outcome that could possibly happen and I was not trying to get my family in any danger at all," Mahmoud said.
Mahmoud said the incident was traumatic for his daughters, which is why he is considering taking legal action against Elzinga.
"The girls think about the situation all the time," Mahmoud said. "They always bring it up and I try to change the subject because I don't want them to ever think about the situation again because it was traumatizing to them."
Elzinga claimed the incident does not represent who he is and apologized for what he said in an interview with WTOL 11. He said is also talking to a lawyer.
An apology to Mahmoud and his family also appears as a pop-up when opening the Erie Orchards' website:
The full text of the apology reads as follows:
"My sincere apologies to Joe Mahmoud, his wife, family, and the whole community for my remarks and actions on Sunday, August 13. I am very sorry.
As a family business we have made a conscious effort to be a welcoming place for all in an often fractured world, and Sunday’s incident, sadly, did not reflect that.
What occurred does not align with my values, beliefs, and heart of inclusion for everyone. I sincerely regret this and offer my deepest apologies."
Mahmoud said he'd like to know whether other Muslim families experienced anything similar at Erie Orchards. He said he will never return to the farm.