A cafe owner in Oakland, California kicked out a man for wearing a Star of David emblazoned on his baseball hat this past weekend, arguing that the religious symbol possesses a “violent” connotation and identifies him as a “Zionist.”

In a video posted on social media, Jonathan Hirsch, who is Jewish, was angrily confronted and asked to leave the Jerusalem Coffee House on the afternoon of Oct. 26 because of his hat. Hirsch and the cafe owner, Abdulrahim Harara, engaged in a heated exchange of words, in which the Jewish man accused the venue of practicing unlawful discrimination.

  • ArbitraryValue
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    4 days ago

    One drink is called “Iced In Tea Fada,”

    That doesn’t sound very subtle. I wonder if this guy really did come to the cafe by coincidence or if it was an act of protest. Either way, the proprietor doesn’t seem to have a good legal defense…

    Edit: The place has an Arabic logo but otherwise it looks like a completely normal Bay Area hipster cafe. (Although I suppose that Bay Area hipster cafes aren’t particularly welcoming to people prominently displaying a Star of David.) “Iced In Tea Fada” really is on the menu.

      • ArbitraryValue
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        4 days ago

        Yeah, it seems like both sides are trying to pick a fight now. I wouldn’t go to that coffee shop but I’m not sure how

        3,000 nearly identical emails titled, “Coffee and terrorism in Oakland.” … addressed to County and City electeds

        are supposed to help.


        Heh, in that article the proprietor claims that

        Ice In Tea Fada has been a featured drink on their menu from day one, and was not a response to any one event.

        However, Google has photos of an older version of the menu without that drink.