Taco Cid, a Mexican restaurant in Columbia, S.C., is defending a controversial T-shirt it produced after a photo of an employee wearing the shirt made its rounds on the web, sparking outrage among customers.
As The Huffington Post reported on Monday, the T-shirt includes an image of a wooden trap with tacos used as bait and a caption that reads: “How to catch an illegal immigrant.” The words are colored with green, white and red, which are the colors of the Mexican flag.
Responding to the backlash against the shirt, which is also reportedly for sale to the public, Taco Cid has released a statement on its website:
Our t-shirts were created as a witty and comical statement regarding illegal immigrants. There are no racial or hate remarks towards any specific ethnic group.[...] As most tax paying Americans, we do believe illegal immigrants are taxing the system we support and live under, thereby, causing us to work harder and pay more taxes in support of their illegal activities which our government has simply chosen to look the other way. Is it racist to disagree with those who are not supporting the American system?
[...] If you do not agree with our views on illegal immigrants, please do not visit our establishment.
Check out what one of the owners had to say about the t-shirts below:
