The “Defeat Jihad” ad, which prompted acts of vandalism and counter ads urging people to “love your Muslim neighbors” in New York, were set to go up in Washington, D.C. last month, but they were “deferred” by the transit authority “out of a concern for public safety, given current world events.” Now they’re finally up, and while the reaction hasn’t been as intense (one ad has been covered in Post-It notes, but there are no reports of spray-painting), one incensed lawmaker is calling for a month-long boycott of the system. Rep. Mike Honda says that while he supports free speech, “The right to not support hate speech is also a right, which is why I encourage people to boycott, if possible, WMATA until the ad buy is finished.” Honda’s office says this hasn’t affected his commute to work, and he’s stopped short of offering boycotting Washingtonians a ride.
