Rep.-elect Christopher Rabb, a Democratic socialist from Philadelphia, did not answer questions about a boycott of Jewish-owned businesses in the city. The demonstration took place around the anniversary of Kristallnacht and drew a large counterprotest in support of Jewish residents and businesses in Rittenhouse Square.
Rabb, who represents part of Northwest Philadelphia in the Pennsylvania House, was contacted through his Harrisburg and campaign offices. A staff member in Harrisburg acknowledged the inquiry and its two-hour response deadline, but Rabb did not comment.
Over the weekend, the left-wing cycling group Philly Bike on Your Left helped organize the boycott in the Rittenhouse Square neighborhood. Flyers reportedly promoted the event with slogans including “No business for Zionists” and “Not in our city.” The group could not immediately be reached for comment.
Kristallnacht, known as the Night of Broken Glass, refers to attacks organized by the Nazis in November 1938 against Jews, synagogues and Jewish-owned businesses in Germany and Austria.
Rabb has often criticized Israel. He has said the “Nakba never ended,” referring to the displacement of Palestinians during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war, and has appeared with anti-Israel streamer Hasan Piker. Rabb has also urged Pennsylvania and the federal government to divest from Israel and joined protests outside the United Nations that described Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a “war criminal.”
His silence stood in contrast to public criticism of the boycott from several prominent Pennsylvania Democrats, including Gov. Josh Shapiro, Philadelphia City Council President Kenyatta Johnson and Sen. John Fetterman.
Rabb’s current state House district covers part of Northwest Philadelphia. In Congress, he is set to represent a much larger area, including Center City and Rittenhouse Square, where the boycott was held.
Questions sent to Rabb asked whether he supported the boycott’s aims, whether Jewish-owned businesses should be targeted because of the Israeli government’s actions, and whether he agreed with Democrats who condemned the event, including Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner.
Krasner pointed to the demonstration’s timing near the Kristallnacht anniversary and called Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel a “terrorist attack.” He also stressed that a country’s leaders and its residents are not the same.
He compared criticism of Netanyahu with opposition to President Donald Trump, asking whether Americans should be blamed for the actions of their political leaders. Krasner also said legitimate protests should not use terms such as “ZioBusiness,” which he likened to rhetoric associated with former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke.
Socialist activists supported the boycott, but the Philadelphia chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America said it had neither organized nor officially endorsed the demonstration.
The chapter criticized Shapiro, Johnson and Rep. Brendan Boyle, accusing them of wrongly equating antisemitism with anti-Zionism and using comparisons to Kristallnacht in ways it said diminished trauma and curtailed political speech.
Boyle had condemned the planned boycott on Thursday, saying that singling out local businesses because they are Jewish-owned was antisemitic. He said the action recalled Nazi boycotts of Jewish businesses in the 1930s and the violence of Kristallnacht, adding that hatred and discrimination had no place in Philadelphia.
The dispute offers an early test for Rabb as he prepares to represent a district that includes both the protest site and the Jewish-owned businesses targeted by demonstrators.
