The owners of a coffee house in Oakland, California have apologized and fired three staff members who confronted a Jewish customer and refused to let her enter a bathroom.
Video of the confrontation, which you can watch below, went viral and drew massive outrage from many Americans who accused the staffers of being anti-Jewish.
“On Sunday, we fell short of this vision. What began as a civil dialogue between our staff and a Jewish customer escalated into a situation that was shocking and unacceptable. Events like these strike fear in the Jewish community and perpetuate the rise of anti-Semitism in our community and around the world,” Amy and Chris Hillyard, the owners of Farley’s, posted on social media.
The Hillyards also profusely apologized for the antisemitic language used by the ex-staffers during the incident.
“We do not tolerate any behavior at Farley’s that makes people feel unwelcome or unsafe. Because this act was not aligned with our values, the employees involved in the incident are no longer employed by Farley’s,” the Hillyard’s posted.
The Jewish customer had already been in the bathroom once before and noticed it the walls had been defaced with horrifying antisemitic messages. The staffers refused to let her back in after they learned she planned to film and document the vulgar messages.
“We are committed to working with community leaders and organizations across the Bay Area to make sure we as owners, and our employees, have the resources, education and skills necessary to peacefully exist in this community. We hope to continue to have the privilege of serving our community and to once again being a coffeehouse where everyone feels welcome,” the company posted.