(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — A café in Uptown – with a Palestinian owner – has been vandalized for a second time since it opened.
The crime was caught on surveillance video both times.
In the video, a man with a baseball bat is seen outside Nabala Café on the 4600 block of North Broadway.
The first time a man smashes one window , where a Palestinian flag was displayed.
The second time, the only window the suspect in the video didn’t smash has an Irish flag displayed.
The coffee shop is named after owner Eyad Zeid’s family’s home village in Palestine.
“It feels pretty clear that it is a hate crime. I don’t know, I can’t see it being anything else,” Zeid said.
“There have been different like stickers and posters and you know, writing popping up outside of the store that say some pretty nasty and racist messages about Palestinians.”
He says in both incidents the man’s face is covered by a keffiyeh. A garment that symbolizes Palestinian identity.
“So it’s pretty insulting that this person would have it on.”