Candidates Sound Off on Wildman's Civil War Store

Wildman’s has been no stranger to controversy over the 50-plus years it has operated in downtown Kennesaw — especially during election season.

The store was opened in 1971 by the late Dent ‘Wildman’ Myers. The shop has been stocked with Nazi and Confederate memorabilia, Ku Klux Klan garb, items caricaturing Black people and displays a “white history year” sign.

It’s been cited as both a source of shame and pride for Kennesaw, with several City Council members making their opposition to the store a campaign centerpiece.

Councilwoman Madelyn Orochena assumed office in January after running on a platform to remove the business from the city’s downtown. In doing so, she successfully ousted incumbent Lynette Burnette who told the MDJ in 2023 she didn’t have an opinion on the store because she had “never walked in.”

Orochena is not the first council member who has taken a swing at the store — James ‘Doc’ Eaton resigned from the council in protest after Wildman’s business license was renewed in 2022.

Eaton’s daughter, Cris Eaton-Welsh, served on the council before him and has also stood in opposition to Wildman’s, moving her chiropractic business outside the city limits to protest the store.

With an open seat on the Kennesaw City Council slated to be filled in a special election just two weeks away, Wildman’s has once again become a campaign issue for the five candidates in the running.

The MDJ reached out to each of those hopefuls — Jason Acree, Ben Day, Anthony Gutierrez, Beatrice Shakal and Sara Torres — to ask what, if anything, they would like to see done about the notorious store, from leaving it alone to supporting Orochena in her efforts to see it removed from the downtown.

‘A moral disgrace’

Day and Shakal were the only two candidates to express any moral or personal opposition to the store’s contents.

“Much like many citizens of Kennesaw, I do have concerns about Wildman’s not reflecting how the city has grown to represent diverse backgrounds and cultures, like mine. Wildman’s should not be the sole representative on who Kennesaw is and has become,” Shakal said. “... As a first generation immigrant, Wildman’s does not represent me nor the values of Kennesaw today.”

Shakal did not address any plans to try and curb the store’s ability to sell its products or display its controversial decorations, stating instead she was focusing on improving infrastructure and uplifting businesses that do reflect the city’s values.

“I am choosing to focus on supporting businesses who have plans to bring our city together through common collaboration and empower new businesses to come to downtown that will show diverse culture,” Shakal said. “If we focus on one store that does not show how strong the community is to be able to have broader visions to bring a lively downtown to welcome young life and families and neighbors to gather.”

Out of all five candidates, Day was by far the most vocal about the impact of Wildman’s, and what steps he thinks can be taken to curtail its “overt racism, hate and xenophobia.”

“Leaving the store alone is not an option for me, it’s a moral disgrace,” Day said. “... I think the city, from a City Council standpoint, possesses the ability to say ‘Hey, we’re going to pass an ordinance that outlaws overt hatred symbols.’ Just like we would not be OK with her (operator Marjorie Lyon) hanging a noose in the front of her building, we shouldn’t be OK with her hanging Confederate flags in front of her building.”

Bigger issues

While Day, an Episcopal priest, said it is one of the most pressing issues he hears from his parishioners and potential constituents, two of his other opponents agreed with Shakal that there are more immediate problems plaguing the city.

“It’s one of the least talked about major issues,” said Gutierrez. “... It feels a lot bigger, but for most voters it’s in the back of their mind. The more pressing issue, right now, in Kennesaw is the style of developments we’re choosing.”

Acree merely responded by saying, “The citizens I’ve spoken with are more concerned with public safety, traffic, and pedestrian safety.”

Free speech

Despite his opposition to the store’s merchandise and decorations, Day joined Torres in maintaining that Wildman’s is a legitimate business, and that its operator, Marjorie Lyon, has a First Amendment right to run the shop.

“Wildman’s has a current business license and pays taxes. Although it may not appeal to everyone, they have a right to exist. If elected, I will be sworn in to uphold the laws and Constitution (free speech),” Torres wrote in a Friday email to the MDJ. “My platform is about ‘building tomorrow together’ because I’m a fan of working with everyone. When building an economically viable and enjoyable downtown, an all hands on deck policy is most helpful.”

But Day said Lyon’s First Amendment rights do not extend to the street, where he said citizens are “terrorized” by the exterior of Wildman’s.

“Marjorie has First Amendment speech (rights) to do and say whatever she wants. But she doesn’t have the right to terrorize people in the community through the displaying of symbols of hate on her building,” Day said. “I think well-meaning, rational people can see the difference between freedom of speech to be able to say and do in the confines of her own establishment what she wants versus the overt nature of hate speech and hate symbols.”

‘Bullying’

Day was clear that change to Wildman’s will not come through “bullying,” of which he said Orochena has been guilty.

Orochena told the MDJ that she is still working on how to best address Wildman’s, and part of that comes with learning more about city code.

“As a newly elected official, I have been focused on studying our policies, procedures, and all that goes into serving as an effective member of council. While doing so I am working on projects that exemplify Kennesaw’s core values of inclusion, transparency, and responsibility to our residents and community,” Orochena said.

Though Day recently drummed up controversy when he accused Gutierrez, Eaton-Welsh and another private citizen on his campaign website of “bullying” Wildman’s, Gutierrez told the MDJ he agrees that the business shouldn’t be targeted.

“If we have codes in our books, they should be followed by every single business. We don’t just get to pick a business to bully and choose to ignore other ones,” Gutierrez said.

Wildman’s took to Facebook last month to address Day’s campaign website, and all those who take issue with the store.

“Perhaps Ben Day and all the people who are on the ‘run Wildman’s out of town’ platform for the past two years straight needs to be schooled on hypocrisy and posting and stating lies, aka personal opinions as facts,” the post reads. “... I would encourage all to run on their own merits and stop using myself and a (50-plus) year local business; both are law abiding. P.S. if you don’t like the flags, don’t look.”

Since that post, Day said he has engaged with Lyon to try to find compromise.

“We need to mitigate the overt racism, hate and xenophobia. There are legal ways to mitigate that which don’t involve bullying or forcing a compliant business to shut down,” Day said. “... I think it begins with a conversation.”

Kennesaw’s special election is May 21.