Smitten, a Jewish-owned ice creamery on Valencia Street, will reopen after its storefront was last week vandalized with graffiti reading “Free Pelestien” (sic) and “Out the Mission.” This was confirmed by owner Robyn Sue Fisher in a letter to the community obtained by Mission Local this morning.
“We are working to reopen Smitten’s doors to all people as a place to come together, to connect with open hearts, and to help spread love across this city … and beyond,” wrote Fisher. It is not clear when the store will reopen.
Fisher wrote that the incident is currently being investigated as a hate crime. The San Francisco Police Department said Monday that it had no updates to share.
In the early morning hours of Oct. 25, several windows of the shop’s storefront were smashed, and the one remaining window was tagged with graffiti reading “FREE PALESTIEN,” misspelled. Mission Local has since reviewed photos showing another tag on the store’s door that read “Out the Mission,” before it was covered in plastic.
The entire storefront was quickly boarded up with plywood later that day.
Fisher has never taken a public stance on Israel. This targeted attack appears to be spurred by Fisher’s Jewish identity.
Smitten Ice Cream began when Fisher started making ice cream from her own patented ice cream machine, using liquid nitrogen. She began selling it from a cart in the Mission, and later opened stores in the city and San Jose. The location on Valencia Street opened in 2017.
The comments on Smitten’s Instagram post show an outpouring of support for the chain.
I have detested Israel’s disregard and worse for the Palestinians for decades.
But people too stupid or too beholden to their extreme dogma to be able to discern between the actions of Israel and those who are Jewish are bigots and should pay a price in our society. The are the left’s version of MAGAites.
I am very concerned that every pro-Palestinian voice is shouted down in media. But that shouting down does not give a pass to this kind of mindless attack. The perpetrators are cowards and no better than Israel.
I am wondering why the headline labeled this obvious anti-Semitic attack as “Pro-Palestinian” rather than what it actually was: virulently anti-Semitic. Can we not put those words upfront?
The conflation of being Jewish with being in support of the evil government and policies of Netanyahu is far from uncommon. It needs strenous labeling and condemnation in its own right.
There seems to be some fear in standing up for some oppressed/targeted people instead of the currently favored oppressed people.
There is a rise of anti-Semitism that is clearly happening in many cities worldwide. Why is it not clearly called out m- clearly named – in the headline?
Disregard for Palestinians? You mean their multiple offers for them to have their own state that were met with attempts at genocide?
Please tell…
Such a sweetheart offer too.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Bank_Areas_in_the_Oslo_II_Accord
I totally agree.
It concerns me that this article mentions, “pro-Palestinian vandalism,” but not specifically anti-semitism, which this act clearly was.
Jewish people, like any other cultural or religious group, is diverse in its opinions. To attack a business just because it is owned by a Jewish person, should have us all very concerned.
Switch “Jewish” with any other cultural or religious identity, might help others to understand better.
Sir or madam —
Once again, this article clearly states that the store appears to have been singled out because of the owner’s Jewishness and also states that, per the owner, police are investigating this as a hate crime.
Maybe you have a different opinion of our readership, but I think they’re sharp enough on the uptake to know what’s going on if someone is singled out for a potential hate crime because of their Jewishness.
JE
I really love the colonial settler occupier opinions. You have all benefited from the genocide of Native Americans. Do not forget that.
“disregard”
Let’s remember Israel’s been dealing with a neighbor who’s stated goal was and continues to be the killing of all Jews and elimination of Israel. How’d you regard a next door neighbor who told you straight to your face he’d come after you?
What does anyone expect from the Pro Hamas set? Ignorance breeds hate and no group is more ignorant than those who chant ‘from the river to the sea’ and attack ice cream shops – how many protesters can actually name the river OR the sea in question — without phoning a friend? Extremists can continue their fact-free obsession with blaming Israel for its own attack, but they’d do well to read history from a book, and not form a bizarrely militant view off of a tweet or a Tik Tok video. And, going by the misspelled protests signs, an elementary level spelling lesson couldn’t hurt either.
Glad someone is covering this incident, to be sure. I’m bothered – generally speaking – at the false dichotomy that someone is either Pro Israel or Pro Palestinian – for those of us that have lived and worked in the mid east, we know it’s far more complicated than that terminology would suggest. It’s sad to see this become an increasingly zero sum question.
1. The liberal media avoids using the term “antisemitism” like the plague; they much prefer pro palestinian as it fits their lopsided narrative.
2. Joe is doing a bit better this time! He actually addressed the potential antisemitic nature of this crime, whereby in the first article it was completely absent.
3. There is tremendous ignorance among progressives on what is actually happening between Israel and palestinians. Drawing pathetic moral equivalencies, placing ALL the blame on Israel and NONE on hamas, etc., etc. Fortunately this is only a minority (but a loud one) as most Americans know better, but wish to avoid engaging in this powder keg of an issue.
4. At the end of the day Israel is a sovereign nation and will make its own decisions as to its security. When the nation is threatened like this (October 7 massacre), Israel gives exactly zero fucks about what ROW (rest of world) thinks and maybe half a fuck what the USA thinks.
“However, Smitten is definitely a gentrifying influence (along with Manny’s and many high end restaurants), so I think the “Out the Mission” reflects this!”
This comment is such ignorant, WOKE nonsense. “Gentrifying influence.” You think Manny’s of all places is gentrifying the Mission? A nice ice cream shop is gentrifying the Mission? So you’d rather have filthy streets, graffiti everywhere, more liquor stores and pawnshops, and people selling stolen goods on Mission St. rather than responsible merchants who really care about this city and have the courage to open up a shop in this most challenging of business environments?? Are you really that misinformed and ideologically driven?? The word “gentrify” is grossly misused by many so-called progressives like you who, in a kneejerk fashion, reduce any effort to improve the quality of life in this beleaguered city as motivated by a desire to raise rents and property values so as to kick out all the poor people. As Helen commented, your statement is very mean-spirited. But let me add that IT IS SHAMEFUL AND COMPLETELY UNTRUE (Manny’s is a “high-end” restaurant????)
I am a Muslim-American of Indian origin and I unconditionally condemn this hate-driven vandalism. No true believer in Islam would harm innocent people in any manner. That is just wrong and cowardly. I applaud the ice cream store owner’s moral courage and fortitude. Further I will pray for her protection and success. May God bless her.
$57k raised of a $100k goal go fund me.
Wtf?
I very much doubt that the semi-literate street “artist” who did this knew the owner was of Ashkenazic extraction! How would they possibly know that?
However, Smitten is definitely a gentrifying influence (along with Manny’s and many high end restaurants), so I think the “Out the Mission” reflects this!
Sorry Brad but that’s a very mean- spirited comment. And inappropriate at this time
How miserable does your life have to be to go online, single out Jewish-owned businesses by name, and justify violence against them?
Your comment is sick, and deserving of all the downvotes.
WAKE UP SAN FRANCISCO! WAKE UP MISSION DISTRICT! We have a serious anti-Semitism problem. We have a very serious crime and vandalism problem. These problems are all interrelated. They are promoted by the same cast of fringe characters.
It all starts with extremist statements like the one above and the unwillingness of good people to call it out, because of fear.