Philadelphia Leaders Condemn Planned Boycott Ride Targeting Jewish Businesses

A bicycle protest targeting businesses in Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Square area is scheduled for November 8. Promotional material names several establishments whose owners are Jewish or Israeli American, including Mac Mart, Huda, Dizengoff and Schlesinger’s. The organizers describe the businesses as Zionist establishments and call for them to leave the city.

Four Jewish organizations, including the Anti-Defamation League’s Philadelphia office and the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia, condemned the event and urged city and state leaders to do the same. They said political criticism of Israel is protected expression but argued that targeting businesses because of their owners’ Jewish identity or perceived ties to Israel crosses a line. The ride is scheduled for November 8, one day before the 88-year mark of Kristallnacht, the Nazi-led attacks on Jewish communities in Germany and Austria.

Philadelphia officials said the city’s Commission on Human Relations opposes antisemitism and other forms of bigotry, and will not allow businesses, individuals or jobs to be driven out of the city. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said state police were working with local partners to help ensure public safety. Attorney General Dave Sunday also condemned the targeting, saying it discriminates against business owners for their Jewish identity.

Mac Mart co-owner Marti Lieberman said the attention had brought supportive messages and customers, and hoped it would highlight what small-business owners face. Huda co-owner Yehuda Sichel said he was proud of his Jewish heritage and that his business would remain open to everyone. Jewish organizations said the boycott could intimidate and exclude Jewish residents from civic and economic life.

Targeting Jewish-Owned Shops Is Not a Defense of Palestinians

A planned bicycle protest in Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Square area is targeting businesses because organizers label them Zionist establishments. The event is set for November 8, a day before 88 years have elapsed since Kristallnacht. That timing and the call for the shops to leave the city make this more than a dispute over Israeli government policy: the businesses’ owners are being marked for their identity or presumed views.

Criticism of Israel is protected political expression, Jewish organizations said, but that does not justify intimidation or discrimination against business owners. Philadelphia and Pennsylvania officials condemned the planned targeting, and state police are coordinating with local partners ahead of the event. The city’s Commission on Human Relations said it would not allow businesses, people or jobs to be driven out of Philadelphia.

Mac Mart co-owner Marti Lieberman said her business had received supportive messages and customers. Huda co-owner Yehuda Sichel said he was proud to be Jewish and that his business remained open to everyone. The organizers’ demand that businesses leave the city undermines the distinction between opposing a government’s policies and punishing local people for their Jewish identity. A protest framed as justice cannot defend that kind of exclusion.

Philadelphia Officials Condemn Anti-Jewish Business Boycott

Organizers of a planned Philadelphia bicycle protest are seeking to drive businesses they call Zionist establishments out of the city. The November 8 ride targets shops in Rittenhouse Square whose owners include Jewish and Israeli Americans, and takes place one day ahead of the 88th annual commemoration of Kristallnacht. City and state leaders are right to treat the targeting as a serious matter, not as ordinary criticism of Israel.

Jewish organizations said political expression does not give protesters license to intimidate or discriminate against businesses because their owners are Jewish or believed to be connected to Israel. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said state police were working with local partners to help protect public safety. Attorney General Dave Sunday also condemned the targeting as discrimination based on Jewish identity.

The organizers’ stated aim of pushing businesses out of Philadelphia puts local owners in the crosshairs over their identity or perceived politics. Mac Mart co-owner Marti Lieberman said her business had received community support, while Huda co-owner Yehuda Sichel said his doors remained open to everyone. That support is welcome, but it does not erase the pressure created by a campaign to exclude businesses from the city. Condemning that campaign is not a rejection of free speech; it is a defense of the right of Jewish residents to participate in civic and economic life.