Update: The Anti-Defamation League Friday castigated Michael Avila and called upon the Buskwick coffee shop owner to apologize for the anti-Semitic remarks he posted on Instagram, which the organization said had “deeply offended the Jewish community as well as the entire borough of Brooklyn.”
“Mr. Avila’s attempt to mask and justify his anti-Semitic tirade by claiming his views towards Jews are motivated by politics – rather than religion – is a feeble attempt at contrition,” said Evan Bernstein, the ADL New York regional director in a statement released Friday. “We call on Mr. Avila to work to understand the evils of anti-Semitism and bigotry and accept full responsibility for his statements. We welcome the opportunity to sit down with him to help him understand the history of anti-Semitism and its impact on the Jewish community.”
Avila had removed the offending posts early Friday, and his Instagram and Facebook accounts were deactivated by Friday afternoon.
***
The Bushwick coffee shop owner who got his beans roasted after going on an anti-Semitic rant about “greedy” Jews “infiltrating” his neighborhood defended his scathing remarks Thursday, saying they represented “the truth.”
Michael Avila, who owns The Coffee Shop on Wilson Ave., posted a rambling screed to Facebook Wednesday railing against “Jews who want a piece or all” of the trendy Brooklyn ‘hood.
The same rant was posted to the shop’s Instagram page, @bushwickcoffeeshop.
It was first reported by the blog Brokelyn.
“Ok, what I REALLY want to ask Abraham about ASAP is how to consider considering the Jews who want a piece or all of Bushwick,” Avila fumed.
The peddler of $5.65 cappuccinos and vegan fudge told the Daily News he was ticked after a visit from two “rude” Jewish customers on Wednesday.
The men were acted “sneakingly” and eventually revealed an interest in buying the building owned by a neighbor whom Avila described as a “hoarder.”
“His place makes the hood look less attractive and I would like him to either clean up or move along,” Avila, 32, of Bushwick, wrote online.
“BUT NOT be bought out by Jews however, who in this case (and many cases separate — SORRY!) function via greed and dominance,” he said.
“Bushwick IS rising and progressing, and bettering, but us contributing or just appreciating this rise and over all positive change do not want to be lumped with greedy infiltrators,” he sneered.
Avila, who opened less than four months ago, refused to back off of his written comments when questioned at his shop Thursday, although he said he could have chosen better words.
“It just so happens this is the truth. It wasn’t a racist remark,” Avila said. “It could have been anybody. It could have been African Americans, but that’s not what it is.”
Jewish “Zionists” are spilling over from Williamsburg and looking for more buildings to turn into luxury condos, he warned. The Bushwick community needs to stand up for itself, he said.
“I think it’s just about speaking out for what we want and what we prefer,” he said.
Unsurprisingly, the vitriol left some Coffee Shop customers a little less than buzzed.
“I wonder who’ll be moving in next in 203 Wilson Ave., I imagine it wont be long before you’ll be closing down — maybe a Jew?” one poster wrote.
“What an embarrassment to humanity,” another said.
“Wow, you just lost my business,” another chimed in. “Keep your antisemitic ramblings to yourself.”
As critics piled on, Avila kept up his online diatribe.
“I will be bold enough to generalize and expose that I’m very displeased with this general culture’s behaviors of dominance and Illuminati sensibility,” he said.
In a series of follow-ups, Avila doubled-down on the fiery remarks and beefed with people who called him a bigot.
One bizarre response featured a video clip of the comedian Roseanne Barr.
“Here’s a #Jew that I’m in love with,” the post said.
Avila, who describes himself as “very spiritual,” said he was surprised by the backlash.
“I love Bushwick, and I love everybody, and I love all races,” Avila said, “but the only way we’re all going to be in harmony is to be sure consciously that we’re treating each other right.”