Bicycle tires. Credit: Pavel Danilyuk/Pexels (via JNS)
Jessica Russak-Hoffman | JNS
Yehuda Sichel, who owns the restaurant Huda in Philadelphia, has been getting “incredible” support from the Jewish community after anti-Israel groups said that they would hold a boycott bicycle ride past his restaurant on Sunday, on the eve of the anniversary of Kristallnacht, he told JNS.
Those who support Huda and other targeted Jewish-owned restaurants are organizing a community food crawl, for which residents are invited to gather at Huda, which is located near Rittenhouse Square in Center City, at 11:30 a.m. on Nov. 8.
The square, which William Penn planned in the late 17th century, is where the “boycott ride” is slated to occur at that same time.
“Instead of a boycott, let’s show up for our local Jewish-owned businesses,” an ad promoting the crawl states. It also lists stops at K’Far Café and Mac Mart, along with Dizengoff, Goldie and Schlesinger’s. (Goldie, a falafel restaurant, is kosher.)
“The outpouring of support from the Jewish community has been incredible, and we’re truly grateful,” Sichel told JNS. “People have been showing up to support our businesses, and we look forward to welcoming everyone Sunday.”
“We won’t cower,” he said. “We’ll show up strong with pride and solidarity and keep the focus on peaceful support.”
It is “deeply personal” for Sichel, the grandson of Holocaust survivors, to see Jewish businesses targeted on the anniversary of Kristallnacht, he told JNS.
“I’m proud to be Jewish and supportive of Israel,” he said. “Neither should make my business a target.”
Marti Lieberman, who owns Mac Mart, told JNS that the “negativity, aggression and anger have been overshadowed by an unbelievable amount of love and support for our small business and the others included on the flier.”
“We’ve been inundated with emails, calls and direct messages,” Lieberman said.
Mac Mart isn’t typically open on Sundays, but Lieberman plans to open the kiosk during the food crawl “to show that we won’t be scared into closing but most importantly, to say thank you to everyone who has rallied around us and the other businesses.”
“People have been sending Venmo contributions to support our business and help us pay it forward with meals for those who can’t afford them,” she told JNS. “Others have been ordering holiday trays and booking catering. Every message, order and act of kindness means so much to us.”
“We’re going to make as much food as we possibly can on Sunday and do what we’ve always loved doing—feed people,” Lieberman said.
The Anti-Defamation League is urging Philadelphians to dine at Jewish-owned eateries this week. “This is no coincidence,” the ADL said, of the boycott timing. “It’s a deliberate message of hate and intimidation.”
“Criticizing a government is free speech. Declaring that Jewish-owned businesses ‘must go’ and ‘not in our city’ is discrimination and attempted intimidation. This Sunday’s ‘Boycott Ride’ in Philadelphia falls on the eve of the Kristallnacht anniversary. The best answer to a discriminatory act is to show up for those it targets. Patronize these businesses today, tomorrow, this weekend and for weeks, months and years to come. Bring friends. Leave a review. Make them your regular spot. Hate counts on us staying away. Let’s fight it by showing up,” said Andrew Goretsky, senior regional director ADL Philadelphia.
The American Zionist Movement, a group of 51 national Jewish organizations, also called on Philadelphians “of every faith and background” to support Jewish-owned businesses “by visiting them, bringing their families, friends and colleagues and demonstrating that discrimination and intimidation have no place in their city.”Philly Bike On Your Left and other anti-Israel groups are promoting the ride with a demand that “these Zionist establishments must go.”
Shawn Ritchie, a Philadelphia Police Department spokesman, told JNS that police officers are “in contact with several members of the community” about the food crawl.
The department is aware of the “boycott ride,” Ritchie said.
“While we cannot discuss specific operational or deployment details, our priority is to ensure the safety of everyone involved, as well as the general public,” he told JNS.
Jim Berk, CEO of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, called on Philadelphia’s leaders to condemn the event.
“Philadelphia is known as the City of Brotherly Love. So why, on the eve of Kristallnacht, are Jewish-owned businesses being singled out for boycotts and exclusion simply because they are Jewish?” he said. “No one would think to target a Chinese restaurant over Beijing’s policies or a French bistro over decisions made in Paris. Yet Jewish businesses are being held responsible for the actions of a government thousands of miles away, regardless of their actual beliefs or affiliations. That is not a legitimate political protest. That is antisemitism.”
In a statement on the social media platform X, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker said safety was non-negotiable.
“Everyone has the right to peacefully protest and express their political views. But singling out businesses because their owners are Jewish is unacceptable and has no place in our city,” she said.
Parker added the Philadelphia Police Department will “maintain safety and order throughout the demonstration, protect nearby residents, businesses, and houses of worship, and safeguard the constitutional rights of those demonstrating peacefully.”
Dave Sunday, attorney general of Pennsylvania, condemned the boycott and said that its timing on the eve of the Kristallnacht anniversary is “unsettling.”
“By explicitly targeting businesses because their owners are Jewish, the organizers are engaging in a form of discrimination that falls back on some of the oldest antisemitic tropes and tactics in history,” he said.
“This is not simply a protest directed at the policies of Israel,” he said. “Rather it singles out our fellow Pennsylvanians based on their Jewish identity, targeting them for policies they have nothing to do with and no ability to affect because of their faith.”
Gov. Josh Shapiro’s office said the Pennsylvania State Police were working with local law enforcement to ensure safety this weekend.
“The Shapiro Administration is aware of this planned protest and the Pennsylvania State Police is engaged with our local partners to ensure the safety and wellbeing of our neighbors in Philadelphia,” Shapiro’s office said in a post on X. “This bike ride, masquerading as a protest to advance the cause of justice, is nothing more than blatant antisemitism designed to intimidate and drive Jewish businesses out of our communities, and there is no place for that in our Commonwealth.”
Philadelphia Jewish Exponent staff contributed to this report.