A kosher restaurant in D.C. was vandalized on the anniversary of Kristallnacht. News4’s Mauricio Casillas reports.
Char Bar, a kosher restaurant in D.C., was vandalized by having two of its windows smashed on Saturday, police say.
On the morning of Nov. 9, officers were called to the 2100 block of L Street in Northwest D.C. by a concerned citizen about broken windows. Officers saw two smashed windows and rocks on the sidewalk.
No one broke into the establishment. Since the incident, the restaurant's windows have been boarded up.
“Just the idiocy of people — that was my first reaction,” said Michael Chelst, the owner of Char Bar. “Like, really? You don’t have anything better to do with your lives than to waste energy and time and people’s money to do what? We’re just a restaurant here.”
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Chelst said what was most concerning to him was when the crime happened.
The vandalism comes on the 86th anniversary of Kristallnacht.
Kristallnacht, which took place in November of 1938 before the Holocaust happened, is called the "night of broken glass" because thousands of Jewish homes, businesses and places of worship were destroyed by German Nazis. Around 90 Jewish people were killed and around 30,000 Jewish men were arrested and sent to concentration camps, according to NBC News.
News4 reached out to D.C. police to see if this is being investigated as a possible hate crime. So far in the investigation, there is no information or evidence that the vandalism was motivated by hate or bias, but that's something that could potentially change as more information comes to light.
“That’s a disappointing thing to hear because it’s pretty clear that it’s a hate crime,” Chelst said. “There’s seven other places with glass on this street and they didn’t hit any of those.”
Despite the vandalism, customers continued to come to the restaurant, with many saying they decided to dine there as a way to support business.
An online fundraiser was also created to help pay for repairs, which Chelst estimates could cost close to $10,000. He said he’s appreciative of the support.
“Whatever type of hate is out there, we all need to do our part to try and help not let that happen and be supportive of it, and in the meantime, we’re going to go on and we’re going to live our lives and not let people like this change our mission, which is to support our community,” Chelst said.
The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington calls the incident "deeply disturbing" in a statement put out Sunday morning.
"Its timing on the 86th anniversary of Kristallnacht, "the night of broken glass", raises many more questions and concerns that must be answered," the statement said.
The Federation says they demand a "full investigation and the swift arrest of the perpetrators." Its JShield security division and partners are in contact with local enforcement and the D.C. government.
This is an ongoing investigation. Anyone who knows anything is asked to reach out to the Metropolitan Police Department.
Editor's Note: A previous version of this story stated "several of Jewish homes, businesses and places of worship were destroyed by German Nazis" from a press release. The updated version now says "thousands" to reflect the magnitude of the incident.
