Culture and Social Issues

‘Don’t Want A Zionist’: New York City Bookstore Cancels Event With Pro-Israel Moderator

New York City (Screen Capture/Smithsonian Channel)

A New York bookstore cancelled a book launch Tuesday due to the event moderator’s pro-Israel stance, according to the New York Post.

Veteran author Joshua Leifer had been scheduled to discuss his new book with Rabbi Andy Bachman at Brooklyn bookstore Powerhouse Arena when the establishment revoked its support for the event due to Bachman’s pro-Israel views, the NYP reported. Additionally, despite the book launch being planned for roughly a week, the bookstore waited until just a few hours before the two men were set to take the stage to cancel the event, citing “unforeseen circumstances.”

“We don’t want a Zionist on our stage,” Powerhouse Arena’s manager told Leifer when he and his wife went to try and resolve the issue, according to audio of the incident Liefer provided the NYP.

Less than an hour before the launch event for my book Tablets Shattered, a conversation with Rabbi Andy Bachman, @powerHouseBooks in Brooklyn told me they were unwilling to host the conversation with Andy because they would not permit a Zionist on the premises.

— Joshua Leifer (@joshualeifer) August 21, 2024

The manager then allegedly threatened to call security on the couple, according to the NYP.

The decision was reportedly made last minute, with Liefer telling the Post, “they had roughly a week to vet Andy, in fact they even put the event up on their website with his bio and photo.”

Both men were upset by the bookstore’s decision. Bachman described it as “an utterly shocking, disheartening experience,” according to the NYP.

Bachman describes himself as a “proud Zionist,” who also opposes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, the Post reported.

“In this day and age, anyone who identifies with the right of the Jewish people to their homeland is considered an enemy of their cause and it’s something I never thought I’d experience in my life but I’m seeing it happen in real time,” Bachman told the NYP. Powerhouse bookstore “should be ashamed of themselves for silencing what only was meant to be an interesting conversation about American Jewish identity in the 21st century.”

Powerhouse bookstore, Joshua Liefer, and Rabbi Andy Bachman did not immediately respond to requests for comment.