GRAND HAVEN, Mich. — A West Michigan business owner is apologizing after sharing a controversial Facebook post concerning face masks and the Black Lives Matter movement.
The owner of Pronto Pup in Grand Haven, Carl Nelson, says he meant to post on his personal page but ended up posting on his business's official page.
In the post, Nelson said he would rather the health department shut him down than have his employees wear masks -- which he says isn't a health issue but a political one.
He also mentioned painting "White Lives Matter" on Grand Haven's Washington Street, saying the BLM movement has nothing to do with racism but is simply a democratic political ploy.
Nelson also talked about scaling back police department funding and about how long it takes an officer to get to a scene. He also mentioned how he thinks that Jeffrey Willis brought Jessica Heeringa to his business back before she disappeared.
"Looking back, I should have grabbed my .38 and held the man with her but instead I called 911," he said in the post. "Twenty minutes and no officer."
After getting plenty of backlash, Nelson deactivated the Pronto Pup page before putting it back up with the apology.
The posts have received hundreds of comments and Nelson said some of his employees do not want to come to work after getting messages about the post.
Pronto Pup Grand Rapids shared a post on Facebook Monday night, saying they want to make everyone aware they are not affiliated with any other Pronto Pup restaurant or food truck.
