By Bruce S. Ticker in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
A frustrating time for Israel-bashers happened on the way to Capitol Hill and Jewish-owned restaurants in Philadelphia. They were outnumbered.
The anti-Israel mob in Congress multiplied on election day, but the blue tsunami that left us with a lopsided Democratic majority turned them into a tiny minority. Most Democrats who flipped Republican seats did so in conservative states like Iowa, Texas and even South Carolina. They cannot afford to associate themselves with self-professed socialists who would risk tar-and-feathering by the moderates’ neighbors.
On a parallel course, so to speak, 200 to 300 pro-Arab demonstrators on Sunday sought to drive six Philadelphia Jewish-owned restaurants into the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers (as a stand-in for the sea) by peddling bicycles along with fear to boycott the restaurants. They were overshadowed by hundreds of pro-Israel activists, many of whom crammed into those restaurants to feast on their offerings.
Nov. 3 was a second critical turning point for the “Free Palestine” movement to risk insignificance. During the summer, Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner dropped out of the race when a former girlfriend accused him of rape. The scandal exposed the underside of the anti-Israel campaign, which emboldened more people to criticize them.
They erred in linking domestic issues with Israel’s conflict with Hamas. If they were serious, which they were not, they would have dealt with these subjects separately. In an abstract way, the connection between Israel and social issues led to them being branded as communists and socialists. Some of their ideas are dead on arrival, but they generally sought to improve the lives of vulnerable Americans.
“It is clear that it is moderates in these swing districts who flipped the House (of Representatives),” said Democrat Elaine Luria, who is making a return engagement after winning back her House seat in Norfolk, Va., as quoted in a New York Times analysis last week.
The Times analysis explained, “Newly elected Democrats will now have to answer to constituents in districts that remain fundamentally conservative. Their political survival, and the durability of the party’s power, will depend on convincing skeptical constituents that Democrats have improved their lives, potentially giving leaders a powerful argument for prioritizing affordability measures over ideological battles or an aggressive impeachment agenda.”
Let’s say that the so-called progressives gained up to 15 or 20 seats. They form a small fraction of Democrats who will hold 254 or more seats in January. In the Senate, Abdul el-Sayed of Michigan and Troy Jackson of Maine will contend with many of their 98 peers who do not share their anti-Israel attitudes.
Israel will not avoid debate over its relationship with the United States. Members of Congress plan to debate Israel’s bombing attacks on Gaza that followed the massacre in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
As the 88th anniversary for Kristallnacht approached, a bicycle group that could be called the Weird Angels traversed center city streets in Philadelphia with the express purpose of driving six Jewish-owned restaurants into the local rivers.
The bicycle group, calling itself Philly Bike On Your Left, claimed they did not know that their protest was planned for the day prior to the 1938 Kristallnacht anniversary when Nazis assaulted and murdered German Jews, sent about 26,000 Jewish men to concentration camps, damaged businesses and burned more than 1,400 synagogues.
Philly Bike told the Philadelphia Inquirer through Instagram on Saturday, “I can assure you we had no idea when (Kristallnacht) was. That’s not something we would ever do.”
They did do it. They were alerted to the timing and they did it anyway. An estimated 300 protesters – 200 on bicycles – passed through center city streets on what they billed as the “Boycott Ride” to tell owners of the six restaurants that their businesses – like Israel – had no right to exist.
A poster promoting the event listed the restaurants with their names crossed out. “NO BUSINESS FOR ZIONISTS! THESE ZIONIST ESTABLISHMENTS MUST GO! NOT IN OUR CITY!”
They could have postponed their “Boycott Ride” for another day.
Like the new pro-Arab members of Congress, the bikers were outnumbered. The media reported that hundreds of supporters of Israel descended upon the restaurant locations to patronize them. Some owners said they ran out of food and encouraged supporters to return on a more idle day. Two potential patrons told reporters that they came from Baltimore and New York City, both 90 miles away.
Elected officials boosted the Jewish community’s response by condemning the “Boycott Ride.” “Singling out businesses because their owners are Jewish is unacceptable and has no place in our city,” said Mayor Cherelle L. Parker.
Silence from U.S. Rep.-elect Chuck Raab was blaring. The Democrat was elected five days before Sunday’s ride in a campaign sharply critical of Israel. The restaurants are located west of City Hall, which places them in Raab’s congressional district to be.
We can conclude that the protest was not only about Israel but who we are, and Philly Jews won this round. Ronit Treatman, who was an officer with the dormant Philadelphia Jewish Voice, suggested as much in a Facebook post:
“The protesters were not very numerous, and were greatly outnumbered by those of us who came to support Jewish business in Philadelphia. The greatest proof of our success occurred on the bus ride back home.
“There was an Arab protester sitting very close to us,” she continued. “He was shaking with rage, and complaining to someone on his phone that ‘those mother-ing Jews are everywhere!’ For those of you who have any illusions that this could be anything else, that overheard conversation says it all. Pure and simple Jew hatred.”
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Bruce S. Ticker is a Philadelphia-based columnist.