Racism | "Watermelon meets Zion": Drink scandal on Israel Day

Small poster, big discussion: The Schöneberg restaurant "Feinberg's" actually claims to sell "Israeli specialties." However, a drink it offered last Friday at the "Israel Day" of the German-Israeli Society (DIG) Berlin and Brandenburg at Wittenbergplatz caused outrage.

Feinberg's had a booth at the event, offering drinks, including one called "Watermelon meets Zion." The drink was advertised on a sign featuring a cartoon lion wearing an Israeli flag as an apron. In the background, sliced ​​watermelons with faces were visible. The description read: "Israeli-style watermelon chopped, pureed, and chopped over ice with a vodka shot."

Criticism of the advertisement followed immediately, especially on social media. SPD politician Sawsan Chebli, for example, wrote on Instagram that she had always defended the owner of "Feinberg's," Yorai Feinberg, when he was threatened and attacked with anti-Semitic language. "It's all the more shocking that he offers a drink at a party that, for me, cynically celebrates the killing of my people," the Berliner with Palestinian roots continued.

Actor and social entrepreneur Shai Hoffmann calls the Instagram ad a disrespectful and inhumane act. He argues that the operator of "Feinberg's" and the DIG have discredited themselves with this campaign. "They are thus showing their true colors and what they stand for: glorifying violence and dehumanizing Palestinians in the guise of a 'sparkling, light cocktail.'" German-Palestinian journalist Rashad Alhindi stated on X that he has filed a criminal complaint for incitement to hatred and glorifying war crimes.

The watermelon has become a Palestinian symbol at least since the Six-Day War in 1967, when the display of the Palestinian flag was banned in Gaza and the West Bank. Not only because the fruit is cultivated throughout Palestine, but also because it shares the same colors as the flag. The symbol is often used at demonstrations against the war in Gaza.

Feinberg's sees the symbolism differently. The watermelon symbol represents a global movement characterized by anti-Semitism and Jew-hatred, the restaurant stated in a "clarification" on Facebook. They intended to take aim at the symbol "in a humorous way." The message was supposedly: "Modern symbols of Jew-hatred should be shredded in a blender." They did not intend to convey the extermination of Palestinians.

However, the symbolism of the advertisement was apparently too much even for the DIG, and they distanced themselves from it. They only learned about the poster afterward through social media, the DIG Berlin and Brandenburg explained on Instagram. The stands were not inspected in advance, and no complaints were received during the event. "However, we can understand that Palestinians may perceive this apparently satirical poster as an attack on their person and dignity, even if this was not the caterer's intention." They have asked the caterer to refrain from "such questionable advertising" in the future.