Pam Bondi Warns Businesses After DOJ Sues Coffee Shop

United States Attorney General Pam Bondi issued a strong warning to American businesses after the Department of Justice filed a civil rights lawsuit against a California coffee shop on the grounds of alleged antisemitic discrimination. According to the lawsuit, the coffee shop allegedly denied service to two customers based on their Jewish identity and added new drinks to their menu that celebrated Hamas on the first anniversary of the militant group’s October 7 attack in Israel.

Service Denied

The Jerusalem Coffee House in Oakland, California, owned by Fathi Abdulrahim Harara, a man of Palestinian descent, is facing a federal lawsuit over allegations of antisemitic discrimination. Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, the lawsuit claims that the café denied service to two individuals who were visibly Jewish. According to court documents, one of the customers, Michael Radice, visited the café in June 2024 to evaluate it as a potential venue for a fundraising event organized by his employer. At the time, Radice was wearing a baseball cap featuring the Star of David and the Hebrew phrase “Am Yisraeli Chai,” meaning “The people of Israel live.” The lawsuit alleges that during this visit, one of the employees confronted Radice and accused him of being complicit in Israeli military actions following the October 7 attacks. When Radice returned at a later date to host the event, the same employee reportedly recognized him and said, “You’re the guy with the hat. You’re the Jew. You’re the Zionist. We don’t want you in our coffee shop. Get out.” The complaint further claims that Harara and two other employees followed Radice outside, shouting “Jew” and “Zionist” at him. In a separate incident, Harara is accused of asking another Jewish customer to leave the premises along with his 5-year-old son after inquiring whether the customer identified as a Zionist.

Menu Items Commemorating October 7

The civil rights lawsuit further alleges that Jerusalem Coffee House added two menu items on the first anniversary of the Hamas attacks — “Iced In Tea Fada” and “Sweet Sinwar” — believed to be references to the intifada and to former Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, respectively. The lawsuit also notes that the coffee shop has several inverted red triangles, a controversial pro-Palestinian symbol, painted on an exterior wall.

‘We’re Coming After You’

Attorney General Bondi issued a strong warning to American businesses in her recent statement regarding the controversial coffee shop, saying, “You can’t do that. And so we’ve sued them and we’re going to stop this from happening. And anywhere in the country, if you do this, we’re coming after you.” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said in a press release, “It is illegal, intolerable, and reprehensible for any American business open to the public to refuse to serve Jewish customers. Through our vigorous enforcement of Title II of the Civil Rights Act and other laws prohibiting race and religious discrimination, the Justice Department is committed to combating anti-Semitism and discrimination and protecting the civil rights of all Americans.”

A Political Stunt

The owner, Harara, has denied the allegations against him and Jerusalem Coffee House, and his attorney, Glenn Katon, said in a statement that “neither the owner nor staff are anti-Semitic, and they would not tolerate anti-Semitism in their cafe.” Katon called the lawsuit a political stunt and added, “This lawsuit is part of the Trump administration’s effort to silence voices for Palestinian human rights by falsely branding those voices antisemitic. The customer who was asked to leave harassed customers. He has a history of inciting conflict and this is just another staged incident for him to bring attention to himself.”

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