Philadelphia Businesses Targeted in Anti-Israel Protests Ahead of Kristallnacht Anniversary

In Philadelphia, anti-Israel activists are planning protests targeting businesses owned by Jews, calling for their removal from the city, 88 years after Kristallnacht. Business owners are expressing fear but also resolve not to yield to the pressure. The district attorney has issued warnings against antisemitic discrimination.

One Jewish business owner, identified as Liberman, described the situation as frightening, stating she fears for her safety simply because she is Jewish. She believes the protesters targeted her because she openly wears a Star of David necklace, assuming she is pro-Israel. Liberman emphasized that her business has no connection to Israel or Judaism, and she is just a Jewish woman from the suburbs who started a business.

The organizers of the boycott, who described it on Instagram as a way to show "Zionist business owners" that they are "disgusting people," posted promotional materials stating "No businesses for Zionists! These Zionist institutions must go! Not in our city!"

For Liberman and others, the timing of these protests is particularly painful, coinciding with the anniversary of Kristallnacht, a series of pogroms against Jewish communities in Germany and Austria in November 1938 that resulted in the deaths of at least 91 Jews.

Jewish organizations in Philadelphia, including the Anti-Defamation League and StandWithUs, have condemned the actions. They characterized the targeting of businesses as a clear act of antisemitism, aimed at marginalizing the Jewish community from the city's civic and economic life.