The owner of a Washington, D.C., pizzeria believes local businesses should stand for unity as President-elect Donald Trump prepares to take office. Even if it means facing backlash.
Mariya Rusciano runs Menomale Pizza in Brookland with her husband, Ettore. On November 6, she shared a post on X congratulating Trump after his victory. It quickly stirred controversy.
"The people have spoken. @realDonaldTrump won the popular vote and the electoral college. Congratulations!" Rusciano wrote. "Can we gift @WhiteHouse a nice Italian wood burning pizza oven?"
The reaction was swift. Angry comments flooded in, mostly from D.C. residents. Over 92% of the area had voted for Vice President Kamala Harris.
One local asked if Rusciano was “trying to go out of business.” Another resident wrote, “Made it pretty easy to skip your business. I live in Brookland too.”
Some even threatened to boycott the pizzeria altogether. A few emails followed, and one woman shouted profanities at Rusciano’s husband outside the shop.
Rusciano, a registered Democrat, wasn’t surprised by some backlash. She explained she would’ve posted a similar message if Harris had won. “At the end of the day, both candidates called for unity,” she said.
She didn’t expect her post to go viral. “I thought we were doing what’s normal in D.C.—talking about elections. I didn’t think it would blow up like this.”
Politics in the city, she added, feels more heated and personal than before. “When I first voted in 2012, you could still talk to people who voted differently. Now people cut off family over politics.”
Rusciano said the negativity was short-lived. “We got so many more messages of support,” she explained. “It’s really encouraging.”
She’s optimistic Americans aren’t as divided as social media portrays. “Sometimes you need to step away from your screen. Talk to real people in real life. We all have opinions, but that doesn’t mean you treat people with less dignity.”
Her comments come as some D.C. food workers vowed to refuse service to Trump officials. In interviews, several bartenders and servers claimed they’d resist Trump staffers in small, symbolic ways.
Nancy, a fine-dining bartender, said she’d quit “on the spot” if forced to serve Trump officials. “It’s just little bits of resistance,” she said. “Others will see that and feel empowered.”
Rusciano is skeptical. She believes most workers wouldn’t act on such promises. “That kind of intolerance doesn’t reflect the food industry as a whole,” she said.
She stands firm on inclusiveness. “The ambiance should be one of unity. It should not be like this,” Rusciano added.