Gail Hayden, director of the California Farmers' Market Association, was captured on video last week at the Livermore Farmers' Market berating Dan Floyd, owner of Dan Good Cookies, for handing out Pride flags at his booth, and the clip is something to see. Hayden has since resigned.
“I don't even care what the flags are for,” Hayden claimed. “This person may have an issue about ‘xyz.' I've been in places for 40 years where they bring out fetuses and put 'em on ironing boards. My job is to run the market, not to satisfy your political point of view.” Check out her entire tirade:
Floyd said he felt the LGBTQ community was targeted by Hayden, telling NBC Bay Area: “She became very confrontational. Very condescending about the entire thing. I definitely felt scared, and I definitely felt scared for my business. It definitely felt like the flags and what they represent were the target of her tirade.”
Hayden's daughter Kayla claimed the flags were putting children in danger: “Little kids poking each other with them, using them as swords.”
Hayden has since resigned and the CFMA has also resigned from its management role of the Livermore Farmers' Market.
The city released a statement:
Meanwhile, Dan Good Cookies is experiencing a flood of support, so much so that Floyd can't keep up with orders: “I am experiencing too many emotions and being bombarded with too many phonecalls and messages to say it any other way. Thank you for your support over these last few days. I never could have imagined people from my Livermore community and beyond would respond to this situation in such large numbers. I have had a few employees here and there, but at the time of the incident, I was working by myself. I have brought on help to deal with the influx of orders, and even that won't be enough because I can only produce so many cookies in a given amount of time with my current equipment. This is why I have disabled preorders. I apologize and will do my best to serve as many people as possible. I will continue to fill orders that have been placed, and you are welcome to walk right in and bypass any lines that have formed. All shipping orders are in the process of being canceled, and because I am having trouble reading through all my emails, I will cancel and refund all orders that do not get picked up within 48 hours. (Please remember I am closed on Mondays.) If your order is incomplete or late for any reason, I am happy to provide a full refund.”
