Dozens of protesters descended on a hate-mongering Brooklyn coffee shop Wednesday morning after it publicly vowed to refuse service to a pro-Israel politician and its owner’s social media posts comparing Israel to Nazi Germany came to light.
They chanted “end Jew hatred” and “this shall not stand” as they were confronted by a smaller group of counter-protesters — many of them rabbis from Jews United Against Zionism — who waved Palestinian flags and loudly denounced Israel through a bullhorn.
“You are a Zion Nazi terrorist!” one rabbi wearing a keffiyeh and holding a Palestinian flag repeatedly shouted inches from the face of a pro-Israel protester, who replied “Oh you have very bad breath!” and backed away from him.
The sides angrily clashed on the sidewalk in front of Poetica Coffee in Park Slope, at times shouting in each other’s faces, until the NYPD stepped in and cordoned them off in separate areas.
“We will not allow businesses or individuals to discriminate against anyone, including Jewish people, simply for supporting Israel, which is the only Jewish community in the whole world,” said Daniel Rosen, president of the IMPACT organization, who just arrived in New York on a flight from Israel.
The shop excoriated NY Rep. Dan Goldman on social media for buying a cup of coffee at their location over the weekend, posting his photo and asking if their coffee tasted like “genocide juice” in an unhinged rant.
“See, here at Poetica, we don’t serve racists, fascists, homophobes, genocide enablers, or anyone in between,” the shop boasted online, demanding he never again set foot inside the shop again.
The incident prompted the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division to open an investigation, and warn that an enforcement action against the shop could be coming.
But Rabbi Yisroel Dovid Weiss of Jews United Against Zionism said he believes Zionism itself causes antisemitism, and applauded the coffee shop’s attack on Goldman.
“We believe that every step people are taking to stand up to this unjust occupation and genocide is terrific,” he said, referring to Israel’s war against Hamas that began after the Oct. 7, 2023 terror attacks.
“When the people in this coffee shop decided to say to a politician who supports bombing, sends money that they should bomb innocent people, it’s perfectly justifiable, it’s godly and right to stand up and say ‘you have no place in humanity, and you shouldn’t be getting coffee, what you should be getting is a bottle of urine.’”
Rosen said the Jewish community was “indignant” about Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s refusal to denounce the coffee shop on Tuesday, and vowed they would not hesitate to make their outrage known in response to similar acts of antisemitism.
“Our new strategy is that, whenever and wherever these types of things occur, there’s going to be an organized response and there’s going to be some type of price to pay,” he told The Post.
The flames of outrage against the coffee shop were further fanned after hateful LinkedIn posts made by Poetica’s owner, Parviz Mukhamadkulov, were unearthed, including one particularly vile missive in which he wrote “Israel is the Nazi Germany of our time.”
Jayne Zirkle, 24, director of communications for End Jew Hatred, said the community bears a “responsibility” to speak out about antisemitism wherever it exists.
“We are here today to say clearly: hatred has no place in our communities. Jew hatred has no place in our society. And no person should ever be made to feel unwelcome because of who they are,” she told The Post.
“The measure of a free society is not how it treats those who agree with us. It is how it treats those who we disagree with. And on that principle, we must stand together to end Jew hatred.”
Michelle Ahdoot, director of End Jew Hatred, said the coffee shop’s actions fly in the face of basic civil rights.
“No New Yorkers should have to pass an Israel loyalty test to buy a cup of coffee,” she said.
“They don’t need to denounce Israel or AIPAC or Zionism in order to be served at this counter, just like everybody else. We won’t stand for it. The Jewish people standing up for civil rights won’t be silent.”
Pro-Israel protester Gina Friedlander, whose parents survived the Holocaust, pledged to make her voice heard despite the climate of fear.
“I’m not hiding and I’m not being quiet … I’m wearing my t-shirt on the subway. I’m not gonna be intimidated, I refuse. I’m too old for that.”
Another descendant of Holocaust survivors, Stephianie Benshimol, a Brooklyn native carrying a “Proud Jewish New Yorker” sign, said her ancestors would be disgusted by what they saw.
“If my grandmother was alive, she’s probably turning in her grave right now on the Mount of Olives in Israel. This is how it started in Nazi Germany,” she warned.
“If I walked in there, would they refund me or throw me out if I want a coffee on a hot day? I wouldn’t do that if they came into my synagogue or even to my business. I treat them the right way, I don’t care what your belief is.”
Benshimol also slammed Mamdani, who was out stumping for leftist allies seeking congressional seats instead of meaningfully weighing in on the Poetica controversy.
“He doesn’t like the Jewish people. He doesn’t love New York, and I am in fear for my life walking in the streets and also for my children.”
Brian Chenesky, a pro-Israel protester holding a sign that said “FireMamdani.com,” said the mayor has “absolutely not” done enough to protect Jewish New Yorkers, noting he was at Park East Synagogue last month when an anti-Israel mob wreaked havoc at the historic house of worship, another incident Mamdani failed to condemn.
He likened the incident to Kristallnacht – or the Night of Broken Glass – an attack carried out by the Nazis in which Jewish businesses, synagogues and other buildings were destroyed in 1938 throughout Germany and parts of Austria.
“People didn’t have problems with attacking Jewish people, insulting them and bothering them, and eventually killing them,” he said.
“I hope that New York and the U.S. can survive what’s happening to it, And I’m afraid.”
Both factions of protesters outside Poetica dispersed after a few hours, the coffee shop remaining open for business throughout the duration of the demonstrations. No arrests were made.
