Tensions flared in Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Square on Sunday as demonstrators faced off amid a controversial bike ride organized to boycott several Jewish-owned restaurants.
NBC10 was on the scene as demonstrators waving Palestinian and Israeli flags stood near one another, with several verbal confrontations breaking out between the opposing groups.
A line of Philadelphia police officers worked to keep the groups separated as tensions continued to build before the bike ride had even begun.
At least one physical altercation occurred, with NBC10 witnessing police pull one protester away from another. It was unclear whether anyone was arrested in connection with that incident.
However, at least one person was arrested amid the crowd. The circumstances surrounding that arrest were not immediately known.
Police arrest a person amid demonstrations in Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Square on Sunday during a bike ride organized to boycott Jewish-owned restaurants.
Meanwhile, some of the restaurants targeted by the boycott were seeing long lines of customers supporting.
A long line of customers forms outside Mac Mart in Philadelphia on Sunday in support of the restaurant, one of six businesses targeted by a controversial bike boycott.
Why is the bike boycott happening?
The demonstration was organized by Philly Bike On Your Left, a group that describes itself as an “anti-fascist, anti-Zionist social cycling collective.”
On Oct. 31, the group announced plans to boycott what it called “Zionist establishments” in Rittenhouse Square in solidarity with the Palestinian community.
The restaurants named in the boycott include Mac Mart, K’Far Café, Huda, Goldie, Schlesinger’s and Dizengoff.
The planned event drew widespread criticism, including from Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker and Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday, who condemned the boycott on social media.
The Anti-Defamation League also encouraged people to show their support by dining at the targeted restaurants and other Jewish-owned businesses.
“This protest is an attempt to intimidate a Jewish community that has faced generations of violence, exclusion and antisemitism. It’s the latest in a string of incidents that hold Jewish businesses responsible for events in the Middle East,” the ADL wrote. “That’s antisemitic, plain and simple. But we refuse to let hate win.”
Billboards urge Philadelphians to ‘boycott the boycott’
In response to the planned ride, nonprofit organization JewBelong installed billboards at 14 locations across Philadelphia urging people to support Jewish-owned businesses.
The billboards read, “Running over Jewish businesses isn’t a peace plan,” and encourage residents to “boycott the boycott ride.”
The demonstration also falls on the eve of the anniversary of Kristallnacht, or the “Night of Broken Glass,” when Nazi-organized antisemitic attacks targeted Jewish communities in Germany, Austria and Sudetenland on Nov. 9 and 10, 1938.
A pro-Palestinian group’s planned boycott of Jewish-owned restaurants in Philadelphia sparked backlash and condemnation from city leaders as well as community support for the impacted businesses. NBC10’s Kelsey Kushner has the details.
In a statement posted to Instagram, Philly Bike On Your Left said the ride had been “grossly misrepresented.”
“We stand firmly against racism and oppression of all forms, including fascism, antisemitism, islamophobia and colonialism.”