"A little righteous anger really brings out the best in the American personality...
Getting mad in a constructive way is good for the soul-and the country,"
-Lee Iacocca
Supporters for Jewish-owned businesses
filled the streets in Philadelphia yesterday.
Image courtesy/Instagram
Kristallnacht, which translated from German means, "Night of Broken Glass"
was a pogrom instigated by the Nazis against the Jewish citizens of Germany,
which occurred between the 9th and 10th of November in 1938.
Carried out by Nazi storm troopers and SS paramilitary forces, along with
members of Hitler's Youth and German civilians, Jewish neighborhoods
came under attack. Homes, businesses, and synagogues were vandalized
and burned, the windows of which were smashed out, leaving
countless shards of broken glass lying in the streets.
Jews not killed in the initial wave of violence, were later rounded up and
taken away to concentration camps. Meanwhile, the German authorities
stood idly by and refused to intervene and stop the attacks.
I was recently reminded of this time of terror and persecution yesterday,
when an email I received from Newsmax.com reported a "pro-Palestinian"
group's planned boycott of Jewish-owned restaurants in Center City
Philadelphia on Sunday, the eve of the 88th anniversary of Kristallnacht.
The group, called "Philly Bike On Your Left" describes itself as an "anti-Zionist
cycling collective" and had organized a "Boycott Ride" through Rittenhouse
Square in Philadelphia. The demonstration targeted six Jewish-owned businesses:
Goldie, K'Far Cafe, Dizengoff, Huda, Mac Mart, and Schlesinger's Deli.
Promotional flyers for the biker boycott declared, "No business for Zionists!"
and demanded that these establishments leave the city. As Newsmax.com
reports, "The timing is particularly sensitive". This is the truth.
Not only does the date of this boycott coincide with Kristallnacht, but almost
a week ago during the Mid-Term elections, a blue wave, which included a
slew of anti-Jewish, anti-Israel candidates, was swept into power in Congress.
What was planned in Philadelphia, known as the "City of Brotherly Love"
should never be allowed to happen, especially to law-abiding, responsible,
American citizens making positive contributions to our society and nation.
Although citizens are guaranteed the right to peacefully protest their
grievances with the government under the United States Constitution,
these businesses, which make food, not political policies, were
deliberately targeted because they are owned by Jews.
Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker and other city officials condemned
the boycott as "unacceptable", while recently re-elected Pennsylvania
Governor Josh Shapiro, himself a Jew, also denounced the "ride" as well
as Republican Attorney General Dave Sunday, who called it, "discriminatory".
However, it was Representative Brad Schneider (D-Ill)'s comment which hit
the nail square on the head when he said, "It is rank antisemitism, plain and simple."
Fortunately, what was meant as a show of evil was bested by a truly unbelievable
force of good! The "ride" backfired big time, thanks to freedom-loving American
citizens who came to the rescue, driving in from as far as New York City to eat
lunch, while lines of customers and pro-Jewish protesters holding signs
stretched down the sidewalks. Members of the clergy, representatives
of Jewish organizations, and neighbors of these businesses, some who had
never eaten in these restaurants before, also came out to show their support.
According to one social media post covering the boycott-that-bombed:
"The organizers wanted to make six families feel alone.
All of you made sure they weren't."
-Henmazzig via Instagram
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