Harley-Davidson, Polaris End Ties With TN Dealer

Harley-Davidson and Polaris have announced that they will end their relationships with Union City-based Abernathy Harley-Davidson and Abernathy Polaris, after racist remarks regarding Black Lives Matter were made on Facebook, allegedly by the owner, Russell Abernathy.

Multiple media outlets are reporting that the alleged posts were made in early June, and both Harley-Davidson and Polaris have commented that they will not allow this type of behavior.

The following post was made earlier Wednesday on the Harley-Davidson Company Facebook Page:

Racism, hate or intolerance have no place in our world including within the Harley-Davidson community, employees, dealers or riders. We recently became aware of racist comments posted on one of our dealer owner's Facebook page and immediately started a review process. We will not tolerate this type of behavior in our network, and today we are announcing that the dealer owner in question will no longer be part of our dealer network. Harley-Davidson is committed to diversity and inclusion. We strive to create a welcoming environment for everyone: United We Will Ride.

Last week, Polaris made a similar statement regarding the situation, and announced they would no longer be associated with the Union City business, unless the dealer agreed to step down.

Abernathy says that the posts were not his, and that his Facebook page was hacked. He says he has contacted an attorney concerning the matter.