Support Jerusalem Coffee House!

Support Jerusalem Coffee House #ProtectJCH

A Palestinian cafe and community hub in Oakland has been targeted with three lawsuits and a smear campaign. They need your support.

Jerusalem Coffee House (JCH) is a Palestinian-owned café and cultural hub for community-building and organizing in Oakland, California. In the last year, JCH and its Palestinian owner, Abdulrahim Harara, alongside staff of JCH, have become targets of smear campaigns and politically-driven lawsuits. Now the government is going after the cafe in a federal lawsuit meant to silence his stance against the genocide in Gaza and disrupt the community space that has grown around the cafe.

To help the cafe fight this crusade against Palestinian identity and dissent against the genocide in Palestine, the Supporters of Jerusalem Coffee House are asking for financial support! The legal costs and loss of business from media coverage of staged political attacks used to falsely claim anti-Semitism, two private lawsuits backed by zionist organizations, and now another lawsuit brought by Trump’s Justice Department threaten the sustainability of the cafe — which is exactly what they want.

Why should you support?

There has been a concerted effort to silence dissent against the genocide in Gaza and the occupation of Palestine, which our government facilitates. Across the country, individuals—and in particular, immigrants—have been targeted, sued, deported and had their lives destroyed for speaking up for the human rights of the Palestinian people. It is only when we fight together can we stop this repression against people who are speaking out and trying to build a just world where people can live their lives in peace.

What exactly will the money go to?

Money raised will go towards the enormous cost of legal defense, as well as to support and expand the café’s operations, and to continue supporting community initiatives.

Is there anything else I can do after I donate?

• Share this fundraiser everywhere, including beyond the local community.

• Engage with the cafe across social media Instagram, Substack, and stay up to date for more ways to stay in touch.

• Go have some coffee! See for yourself the beautiful active community being built. Check out upcoming events and workshops. Try out the delicious Palestinian-inspired flavors the café offers.

• https://linktr.ee/jerusalemcoffeehouse

More details about the cases:

In February and March of 2025, the ADL (Anti-Defamation League), the law firm of Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan and Aronoff LLP (Benesch) and the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law filed lawsuits against JCH, as part of a concerted campaign to spin anti-zionism as antisemitism. The ADL and Brandeis Center are well-known zionist powerhouses, and these lawsuits come only months after right-wing journalist and provocateur Andy Ngo initiated an Islamophobic crusade against JCH on the social media platform X.

These lawsuits are baseless and politically driven and have been spun to distort and misrepresent actual events. Following the escalating trend of repression against Palestinian identity and pro-Palestine activities since October 7, 2023, this is a coordinated effort to shut down the important community work JCH is doing, through the weaponization of antisemitism and the draining of resources typical of long, drawn out civil cases. We can’t let that happen. This is characteristic of what we’re seeing across the country. When people speak out, they file lawsuits, they deport and separate family members, they send in the marines.

As supporters of Jerusalem Coffee House, we stand in solidarity with all people and communities speaking out against injustice and fighting for human rights.

Thank you for your contributions, commitments, and accountability to foster and build for prosperity. We won’t stand by and let our communities continue to be attacked.

Peace and Solidarity—

Supporters of Jerusalem Coffee House

#ProtectJCH