The owners of locations of Falafel Inc. in North Bethesda and Fairfax removed a mural from its walls in June after some Jewish community members called for the “offensive” pieces to be taken down.
Titled “The Journey to Dignity,” the mural portrayed a person clad in a keffiyeh on a rowboat sailing towards the United States Capitol amid decimated buildings. The person is holding up two fingers. “Every meal you buy helps feed a refugee in need,” the mural read, a reference to the restaurant’s slogan.
Some local residents and members of the Jewish community said the mural’s imagery — referring to the rubble — “glorifies violent extremism and promotes anti-American symbolism,” according to the Fairfax County Times.
A North Bethesda resident, who asked to remain anonymous for safety reasons, said she was uncomfortable with the image of the keffiyeh.
“The keffiyeh is a symbol of a lot of very negative things,” the resident said. “It was made a symbol of terrorism with Yasser Arafat and it’s not something that when a Jewish person sees it, that you take lightly.”
The keffiyeh represents Palestinian identity and unity, according to Britannica.
“The other thing that struck me when I looked at the mural was that it was a mural of a keffiyeh-clad person standing in front of our beautiful Capitol in Washington, D.C.,” the North Bethesda resident said. “The Capitol looked like it was immersed in water almost, which was troublesome. It looked like it was Washington, D.C., in a war zone.”
A commenter under the Fairfax County Times story opined that the mural depicted the “destruction” of D.C.
A statement displayed next to the mural said that the art “portrays an Arab refugee, draped in the iconic kufiya — the oldest and most enduring symbol of Arab identity — arriving by boat in Washington, D.C., in search of peace, dignity, and opportunity.”
Supporters of the mural privately told the Fairfax County Times that the demolished buildings are a symbol of the destruction in Gaza since Oct. 7, not an incitement to violence.
“Like the figure in this mural, we believe in the promise of America as the greatest country in the world — where refugees can rebuild their lives and entrepreneurs can create impact-driven businesses from the ground up,” a spokesperson for Falafel Inc. wrote in a statement emailed to Washington Jewish Week.
The North Bethesda resident said she perceived the subject’s two-finger gesture as a “victory symbol” used by Hamas, contrary to the artist’s statement:
“With a raised hand forming the universal peace sign, the figure stands not in defeat, but in hope. It reflects the lived experience of millions displaced by conflict — people who continue to seek a future free from war, hunger, and exile.”
The resident, a second-generation Holocaust survivor, shared her concerns about the two intersecting red lines on the keffiyeh, which she said is reminiscent of the inverted red triangle symbol used to identify Jews in Nazi Germany.
“In no way is that anyone’s intention nor is it factually correct,” the spokesperson said. “The Kuffiya in question is the traditional pattern design and colors of a standard Kuffiya. That’s been the historical pattern and currently what they look like.”
“When you put all of those things together, it’s troublesome for the Jewish community to feel welcome there,” the resident said of the North Bethesda Falafel Inc. “There was just a lot in that mural that was really disturbing from many different angles.”
On June 1 at 11:21 a.m., the resident shared to Facebook an ActivistMailer.com link urging people to send personalized emails to Federal Realty and EDENS, the leasing agents of the North Bethesda Falafel Inc., for the “immediate removal” of the mural.
The link was shared across many communities including Jewish Moms of Montgomery County, the Fairfax County group United Against Antisemitism and Facebook users from other countries who wrote letters in support of the mural’s removal.
“We came together and we all raised our voices together as a community and we did not want that in our backyard,” the resident said.
The mural was removed within the next day, according to a follow-up Facebook post by the same user on June 2 at 6:33 p.m. More recently, the same mural at the Fairfax location of Falafel Inc. was also removed after community members raised their concerns, the resident said.
The resident said she was pleasantly shocked to see that the mural had been removed so quickly: “Honestly, I broke down in tears. It was so overwhelming that we were heard.”
The same mural has been on display for years at multiple locations around the D.C. metropolitan area “without a single complaint or email,” a spokesperson for Falafel Inc. wrote to Washington Jewish Week.
The spokesperson added that Falafel Inc. “recognizes and take[s] seriously the concerns raised by members of the Jewish community.”
“Antisemitism is real, harmful, and unfortunately still pervasive around the world. We condemn it unequivocally and are committed to standing against hate and discrimination in all its forms,” the spokesperson wrote.
“At the same time, we are proud of our identity as a Palestinian-founded brand. Unfortunately we have experienced that this may be sensitive or uncomfortable for some, but our aim is also to remove that bias as well. Our mission is simple and heartfelt: to serve delicious, affordable food and create a welcoming environment where all people can come together — regardless of their background — while giving back to those in need.”
