MOA Ice Cream Shop Facing Scrutiny Over Religious Name
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – A petition signed by thousands is calling for a boycott of an ice cream shop that's coming soon to the Mall of America.
"Sweet Jesus" ice cream will soon be in the North Garden, but more than 10,000 people are unhappy enough about the company's name to call for a boycott. The company was founded in 2015 in Toronto by Andrew Richmond and Amin Todai, and its first Minnesota location will be the Mall of America.
But according to the petition for boycott, the ice cream shops "serve up blasphemy."
"Choosing the name of our Lord for a brand of soft-serve ice cream is totally offensive and revolting," the petition reads. "However, this is anything but a mere mistake. ... The message is clear: 'Sweet Jesus' is all about trashing Christianity and mocking the saving work of our Lord Jesus Christ."
The group, CitizenGo Canada, currently has nearly 11,000 signatures and has a goal to reach 20,000.
On its Mall of America web site, its mission states, "Sweet Jesus was born out of a love for experimentation. As leaders in the confectionary game, the goal is to combine conceptual thinking with high-quality ingredients and products, in an effort to make something that tastes and looks, unlike anything you've ever seen and had before."
It's not known specifically when the Mall of America location will be open.
