‘unconscionable’: City, State Leaders Slam Philly Bike Ride Boycott Targeting Jewish Businesses

Several Philadelphia and Pennsylvania leaders have criticized local anti-Israel activists who are trying to push pro-Zionist, Jewish, and Israeli-owned restaurants out of town and have organized a bicycle protest against the establishments on Sunday, which is the eve of the anniversary of Kristallnacht, the infamous Nazi pogrom.

The anti-Zionist bike ride is being called “Boycott Ride” and will target half a dozen restaurants in Rittenhouse Square, in Philadelphia’s Center City. The businesses being targeted include the Jewish deli Schlesinger’s, Huda Burger, Mac Mart, Goldie’s, K’far Café, and Dizengoff. Several of them are owned by American-Israeli chef-restaurateur Michael Solomonov.

Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday said the planned protest is “deeply 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,” Sunday said in a released statement. “This is not simply a protest directed at the policies of Israel; 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. That is unconscionable in our Commonwealth, which was founded on religious tolerance, and unacceptable in a city that prides itself on brotherly love.”

Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker also castigated the planned protest.

“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,” Parker said in a statement. “No one should be targeted, threatened, or made to feel unwelcome because of their faith, identity, or background. Every person deserves to feel safe and respected in the city they call home.”

Parker has directed the police commissioner to work with local agencies ahead of Sunday’s protest, and the Philadelphia Police will maintain safety and order throughout the demonstration while also protecting nearby residents, businesses, and houses of worship.

“Anyone who engages in threats, intimidation, or unlawful conduct will be held accountable,” Parker said.

A flyer for the bike protest says “No business for Zionists! These Zionist establishments must go! Not in our city!”

The language is similar to the propaganda used by the Nazis to promote Kristallnacht, also known as the “Night of Broken Glass,” their state-sponsored, anti-Jewish riot and destruction of thousands of Jewish-owned businesses throughout Germany on Nov. 9-10, 1938. During the night of terror, Nazis burned down synagogues, vandalized Jewish-owned businesses, broke into Jewish people’s homes, murdered Jews, and deported 26,000 Jewish men to concentration camps, according to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. The onslaught left at least 91 Jews dead, and over 7,000 Jewish-owned stores were looted.

Sunday’s “Boycott Ride” is taking place on the eve of the 88th anniversary of Kristallnacht.

The main organizer for the bike protest is Philly Bike On Your Left, which describes itself as an “anti-fascist, anti-Zionist” social cycling group.

“Ride around Rittenhouse with us as we show these zionist [sic] business owners that we see them for the disgusting humans they are,” they wrote on Instagram. The groups Philly Solidarity Calendar, Boycott CookNSolo, and No Appetite for Apartheid of Philly DSA are listed as collaborators for Sunday’s protest. 

Philly Bike On Your Left also shared a statement on social media that claims “pogroms” are taking place in the West Bank and says: “As the political ideology of Zionism dies a long deserved death these businesses will die with it.”

The Anti-Defamation League Philadelphia, American Jewish Committee Philadelphia/Southern NJ, the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia, and StandWithUs said in a joint statement they “strongly condemn” the rally. They urged all Philadelphians to support the targeted restaurants and counter the discriminatory boycott with “increased business and visible solidarity.”

“Let’s be clear: This is antisemitism. It is Jew-hatred, plain and simple,” the statement said.

“Marking businesses for removal from Philadelphia is an attempt to intimidate, marginalize, and exclude members of the Jewish community from the economic and civic life of our city … The public targeting of Jewish businesses should alarm every person of conscience,” it went on. “There is a profound difference between criticizing a government and targeting businesses because their owners are Jewish or perceived to be connected to Israel.”

Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations (PCHR) executive director Renee Chenault-Fattah said in a statement that the commission “reaffirms its 75-year commitment to fighting racism, antisemitism and, in recent years, Islamophobia. Acts of bigotry, violence, and hate cannot be tolerated, and we will never stand by and allow businesses, individuals, or jobs to be run out of our city, full stop.”

In a statement to Fox News Digital, a spokesperson for Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro condemned the planned bike ride protest and said Pennsylvania State Police are working with local partners “to ensure the safety and wellbeing of our neighbors in Philadelphia.”

“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,” said spokesperson Rosie Lapowsky.