Brew-tal! <\/p>\n
An unrepentantly lefty Bay Area cafe<\/a> battling three major discrimination lawsuits over treatment of Jewish customers slammed its doors shut suddenly, this week\u2014 citing \u201csafety\u201d fears and raging against its supposed \u201cZionist\u201d foes.<\/p>\n Owners of Oakland\u2019s Jerusalem Coffee House<\/a>\u00a0told customers on social media they were taking time to \u201creset ourselves,\u201d and to \u201cfocus on restoring our nervous systems.\u201d<\/p>\n Abdulrahim Harara is pictured at Jerusalem Coffee House in Oakland. The coffee shop closed amid three separate lawsuits accusing it of antisemitism over its alleged mistreatment of two Jewish customers. Instagram\/@jerusalemcoffeehouse<\/p>\n Jonathan Hirsch is pictured in Oakland. Hirsch, a Jewish man, claims he was kicked out of the Jerusalem Coffee House for wearing a Star of David hat.<\/p>\n The staunchly pro-Palestinian shop \u2014\u00a0which gained notoriety in 2024 for a special Oct. 7 attacks anniversary menu featuring provocatively named drinks like \u201cIced in Tea Fada\u201d \u2014 is being sued by the DOJ, the Anti-Defamation League and the Brandeis Center for Justice. \u00a0<\/p>\n At the center of the legal battles are multiple incidents where the business claims they were harassed by \u201cZionists.\u201d <\/p>\n Abdulrahim Harara is pictured at Jerusalem Coffee House in Oakland. The coffee shop closed amid three separate lawsuits accusing it of antisemitism over its alleged mistreatment of two Jewish customers. Obtained by the CA Post<\/p>\n The coffee shop first snagged the spotlight over a controversial menu designed to commemorate the first anniversary of the October 7 attacks on Israel. Instagram\/@jerusalemcoffeehouse<\/p>\n The DOJ\u2019s suit accuses proprietor Abdulrahim Harara and Native Grounds LLC, of violating the Civil Rights Act\u2019s Title II ban on discrimination based on race, color, religion, and national origin.<\/p>\n A court date for their federal trial with the DOJ is set for October 26. <\/p>\n In a Substack post<\/a>, a representative for the shop said the closure was needed in order to prepare for the court date.<\/p>\n A trail date for the shop\u2019s suit from the U.S. Department of Justice is set for October 26 of this year. ZUMAPRESS.com<\/p>\n The screed, which called the legal action an attempt to \u201crepress free speech\u201d over the cafe\u2019s public, political commitment to the pro-Gaza cause, did not give a timeline for a promised return to normal business hours \u2014\u00a0but went into detail about alleged difficulties the business has faced. <\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve faced harassment, property damage, and hate messages,\u201d the post read. \u201cDespite it all, we\u2019ve continued building the work that matters most to us.\u201d<\/p>\n The ADL and Brandeis Center suits were brought by two patrons, Jonathan Hirsch and Michael Radice, who each visited the caf\u00e9 in 2024.<\/p>\n The coffee shop vowed to reopen, but didn\u2019t say when. <\/p>\n In footage of Hirsch\u2019s 2024 visit, owner\u00a0Harara can be heard telling Hirsch to leave the shop after spotting his hat with the Star of David on it.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a violent hat,\u201d\u00a0says Harara. \u201cAre you a Zionist? Leave.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Hirsch\u2019s lawsuit claims that Harara and the coffee shop engaged in religious discrimination and violated his civil rights.\u00a0<\/p>\n Download The California Post App, follow us on social, and subscribe to our newsletters <\/p>\n California Post News: Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, TikTok<\/a>, X<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, WhatsApp<\/a>, LinkedIn<\/a> The shop is also battling lawsuits stemming from two separate incidents of Jewish customers wearing hats featuring the Star of David who claim they were accosted at the business. AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n Radice says he got into an argument with an employee at the shop who questioned him about his Jewish identity after visited wearing a Star of David hat that included the phrase \u201cThe people of Israel live\u201d in Hebrew. <\/p>\n Radice says the returned to the shop a month later, ending in Harara and other employees following him outside of the shop, calling him a \u201cJew\u201d and \u201cZionist.\u201d<\/p>\n Trendy Bay Area businesses like Beitouna restaurant in San Francisco and Oakland\u2019s Bake Sale Betty threw a fundraiser for the cafe\u2019s legal fund, last week \u2014\u00a0while a small army of support came Harara\u2019s way on Instagram<\/a>, where prominent pro-Palestinian writer Sana Saeed gushed, calling the coffee house \u201csuch an important and necessary space.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s why the aggression against it has been so relentless,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t
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