In a statement, Goldman said he was \u201csorry to see this post\u201d and explained that he had stopped at the coffee shop because his young daughter needed to use a restroom.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe barista could not have been nicer to my 7-year-old daughter and me \u2014 allowing her to use the bathroom even though we had not purchased anything,\u201d he said. \u201cI made sure to buy a coffee in return for her kindness. I hope you at least make sure she gets the tip that she deserved.\u201d<\/p>\n
The US Department of Justice said on Monday it opened a probe into the incident.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Civil Rights Division has opened an investigation and will bring an enforcement action if warranted,\u201d Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon said on X.<\/p>\n
\u201cFederal law prohibits public accommodations such as coffee shops from discriminating against patrons based on their race, religion, or national origin,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Goldman is a Jewish centrist who supports Israel\u2019s existence, but has also been critical of the Israeli government and the war in Gaza, which was triggered by the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led invasion of southern Israel. Critics have accused Israel of genocide in its military campaign against Hamas in Gaza, an accusation that Jerusalem vehemently denies.<\/p>\n
Last year, Goldman said the war was a \u201chumanitarian catastrophe\u201d and called the Netanyahu coalition an \u201cextremist government\u201d that \u201cunjustly hurts Palestinians.\u201d<\/p>\n
Goldman is facing a primary challenge from former New York City comptroller Brad Lander in Tuesday\u2019s election.<\/p>\n
Lander is also Jewish, and defines himself as a \u201cliberal Zionist,\u201d but is running to Goldman\u2019s left when it comes to Israel.<\/p>\n
Goldman represents New York\u2019s 10th Congressional District, covering lower Manhattan and parts of Brooklyn.<\/p>\n
Goldman has been endorsed by AIPAC and J Street, a left-wing Israel lobby group. A spokeswoman for Goldman said he has not taken any donations from AIPAC in the current election period, but does take donations from individuals via the AIPAC website.<\/p>\n
Poetica is a chain with six locations around the city. It was not clear which location Goldman had been to.<\/p>\n
The chain\u2019s website said that \u201cwhoever walks through the door is treated with unconditional dignity.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot as a customer. Not as a transaction. As someone who arrived and deserves to be welcomed,\u201d the website says.<\/p>\n
The owner of the chain, Parvis Mukhamadkulov, told The Times of Israel on Monday that he had received death threats and threats against his family, was in contact with the NYPD, and \u201cwould like to focus on the safety of my family at this time.\u201d<\/p>\n
The coffee shop was also flooded with negative reviews online. It deactivated its Instagram account Monday.<\/p>\n
Before the incident with Goldman, the chain had a history of anti-Israel activism.<\/p>\n
In January, the coffee shop\u2019s Instagram account posted a photo of two Israeli officers with a Palestinian detainee and the caption, \u201cFuck Israel.\u201d<\/p>\n
Other posts showed a Palestinian flag in one of the branch\u2019s locations and the company has posted genocide accusations against Israel.<\/p>\n
The chain closed early during a protest in November 2023 as part of a \u201csymbolic shutdown\u201d against Israel and has posted images of Palestinian casualties on its social media.<\/p>\n
Mukhamadkulov has railed against Israel online, including immediately after the October 2023 Hamas invasion of southern Israel, when he condemned political leaders who expressed sympathy toward Israelis.<\/p>\n
In other posts on X, he called for a ceasefire in Gaza and condemned Hamas, while equating Israel and the terrorist group.<\/p>\n
He has repeatedly accused Israel of \u201cgenocide\u201d and \u201ckilling babies.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mamdani doubles down on AIPAC \u2018monsters\u2019 charge<\/p>\n
The incident came as New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, an anti-Zionist, defended calling AIPAC \u201cmonsters\u201d in comments that were decried as trafficking in antisemitic tropes by leading Jewish organizations.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re talking about a status quo where children are being killed on a daily basis,\u201d Mamdani said Monday during a press event, mentioning the killing of Al Jazeera cameraman Ahmed Washah<\/a> on Saturday.<\/p>\n The Israel Defense Forces said Washah was a Hamas operative. Purported journalists in Gaza have repeatedly been found<\/a> to have been members of terrorist groups.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I am speaking about AIPAC, I\u2019m speaking about an organization that has been supportive of the status quo, that has fought any attempt to actually deliver safety to people, not just in Palestine, but frankly, through much of the region,\u201d Mamdani said. \u201cIt is a status quo for immorality. It is one that I will not accept.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt is important that when we ask ourselves how such death and destruction is happening overseas, we also name those who allow it to take place,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n During a rally<\/a> on Thursday, Mamdani said that \u201cthe monsters that we are up against, they take many different forms,\u201d and then singled out AIPAC.<\/p>\n He described the pro-Israel lobby as an organization \u201cfor whom the only thing more frightening than democracy being allowed to run its course is an end to genocide and [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu\u2019s wars.\u201d<\/p>\n Mamdani continued by alleging that AIPAC moves \u201cmillions in dark money to accomplish a single goal, to preserve their power so that they can turn us against one another instead of our leaders turning towards the moral change we all know to be necessary.\u201d<\/p>\n \t Jewish leaders and Jewish organizations said the comment crossed a line.<\/p>\n The head of the American Jewish Committee, Ted Deutch, said in a statement<\/a> addressed to Mamdani: \u201cWhen you call people monsters, you\u2019re not debating ideas, you\u2019re dehumanizing the people you disagree with.\u201d<\/p>\n Agencies contributed to this report.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AP26103028159526-e1778903563482-640x400.jpg\")
<\/a>
\n\t\tNew York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani smiles during an address marking his first 100 days in office, in New York City, April 12, 2026. (AP Photo\/Andres Kudacki)<\/p>\n