Texas coffee shop owner faces backlash, expulsion from church after anti-H-1B post about Ganesh procession

A 30-year-old Texas businessman, Daniel Keene, owner of Boundaries Coffee in suburban Dallas, has reportedly faced widespread condemnation, expulsion from his church, and significant business losses after posting a controversial video on X (formerly Twitter) in early September.

In the now-deleted post, Keene shared footage reportedly filmed by his wife of a local Ganesh Chaturthi procession passing through their neighbourhood. Alongside the video, he wrote: “We have to cancel the H-1Bs. I want my kids to grow up in America. Not India.” The comment, widely interpreted as xenophobic, quickly went viral and drew sharp criticism from Indian American communities and others online, who accused Keene of promoting religious and cultural intolerance.

According to reports, the backlash led to boycotts of his café, Boundaries Coffee, and his removal from both his local church and gym. Keene also alleged that he received extortion threats following the incident. Despite the fallout, he has remained unapologetic, insisting that his remarks were meant to highlight what he sees as the real-world impact of US immigration policy, rather than to target any community.

In a series of posts on X following his church expulsion, Keene detailed his interactions with church elders, accusing them of unfair discipline and lack of transparency. He claimed he was subjected to over seven hours of questioning about his social media activity and was ultimately told to leave the church.

Keene wrote that on September 24, he was “told to leave the church in a dozen different ways over a two-hour meeting with seven elders and one staff member.” He alleged that he had expressed willingness to give up his leadership roles and simply sit in the pews, but his request to remain as a member was denied.

He further stated that the elders declined to consider testimonials from his Indian friends and refused his request to review posts he said were against racism. Keene also claimed he repeatedly asked for a written explanation of the specific sin or offense he was being disciplined for but received no response.

In one of his posts, he quoted his own message to the elders: “I feel very strongly that I would like the elders to communicate in writing the exact issue at hand and the sin I’m being called to repent of so as to avoid hearsay and division on anything other than the specific issue.”

The church has not publicly commented on the matter. Meanwhile, local media reports suggest that Boundaries Coffee has experienced notable customer losses and online backlash since the controversy began.