Tech CEO Mark Woodward appears to be the latest leader in the industry to draw public ire for his use of social media to express contempt for disadvantaged Bay Area residents.

In a public Facebook conversation about unauthorized vendors allegedly selling produce on street corners in San Jose’s tony Willow Glen neighborhood, the Invoca CEO said he would destroy the vendors’ fruits and harass them in other ways if they attempted to operate near his home.

In a now-deleted post, Woodward wrote, “If that was my house, I would go out there and make their life miserable. I would do whatever it took to make them leave. If that meant destroying some of their produce, or standing out there with signs to chase everyone away, Or (sic) just making them very uncomfortable, I would do that in a heartbeat.”...

Some commenters, who noted that fruit vendors are generally Latino immigrants, accused Woodward of racism — a claim he vehemently denied.