21 hours ago

Philadelphia Jews Answer ‘Boycott Ride’ With Tefillin and Jewish Pride

Hundreds of Philadelphia Jews turned out to counter a boycott of Jewish-owned businesses with a powerful display of Jewish pride and unity, as dozens put on tefillin, more than ten of them for the first time • Full Story

A 76-year-old man in Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Square rolled up his sleeve on Sunday morning and put on tefillin for the first time in his life. Around him, crowds sang Jewish songs loud enough to drown out the protest passing by, while lines stretched around the block to support Jewish-owned businesses.

The Jewish community had come to answer a bicycle “boycott ride” aimed at six Jewish-owned businesses in the neighborhood, targeting owners the protesters accused of supporting Israel. The ride fell the day before the 88th anniversary of Kristallnacht, the 1938 Nazi pogrom in which mobs burned synagogues and destroyed Jewish homes and businesses across Germany and Austria. Philadelphia’s Jews met it by showing up.

The hundreds of community members who came out far outnumbered the protesters, ensuring their boycott attempt failed. Those who gathered described the day as one of hate transformed.

“It was a beautiful event in the end,” said Dovi Greenwald. “You saw how many Jews of all backgrounds came together in unity and Jewish pride.”

Greenwald, a member of Congregation Bnai Abraham in Philadelphia, walked through the crowds and helped over 50 men put on tefillin during the counterprotest, more than ten of them for the first time.

“They were feeling inspired and connected to the Jewish community and appreciated the opportunity to do a mitzvah,” he said.

Harris Gubin, who lives in Philadelphia, said the size of the crowds “sends a message of Jewish pride. We’re not going to be intimidated. We’re going to support our fellow Jews.”

Gubin first heard of the ride in the middle of last week. The ride spread through social media posts, and by Thursday it had drawn national attention.

Alli and Yehuda Sichel own one of the businesses the ride targeted. At first, the Sichels shrugged.

“When we saw this building up and that we were a target, we thought it was business as usual. We were a bit numb to it,” Alli Sichel said. “As it spread, a lot of people reached out and were outraged by it. We were flooded with messages of solidarity.”

The cyclists set out Sunday morning, a number of them wearing face masks, helmets, and sunglasses. The crowds that lined the route through Rittenhouse Square drowned out the hateful message with Jewish joy and song.

Alli Sichel watched the two sides from inside her establishment. “The hate came from people who don’t know us,” she said. “On our side, the atmosphere was the opposite. Happy and positive.”

Many of those who came had stories to share, she said, including a young woman from the Midwest who said the outpouring of Jewish unity was the first time she had felt at home in Philadelphia.

“Yesterday was loud, proud and Jewish,” Alli Sichel said. “And it was awesome.”