Story perspectives

DOJ Probes Poetica Coffee After Anti-Goldman Incident

6/23/2026

Summary

Story summary

The DOJ Civil Rights Division announced on June 22, 2026 it will investigate Poetica Coffee for alleged discrimination against Rep. Dan Goldman.
Poetica Coffee posted that it refunded Goldman’s $9.82 purchase, refused service and called him a genocide enabler; Jewish Community Relations Council leader Mark Treyger called the post antisemitic.
Yelp temporarily disabled new reviews for Poetica Coffee while investigating a surge of one-star ratings tied to the controversy.

History

Historical Context

In the early 1990s Denny’s faced repeated refusals of service to Black patrons, prompting a 1994 DOJ class-action settlement of $54.4 million that forced company-wide racial-bias training for its staff. That precedent reappeared in 2024 when Rep. Dan Goldman urged the DOJ to investigate Poetica Coffee for an alleged anti-Semitic refusal, echoing Denny’s reforms.

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Story summary

The DOJ Civil Rights Division announced on June 22, 2026 it will investigate Poetica Coffee for alleged discrimination against Rep. Dan Goldman.
Poetica Coffee posted that it refunded Goldman’s $9.82 purchase, refused service and called him a genocide enabler; Jewish Community Relations Council leader Mark Treyger called the post antisemitic.
Yelp temporarily disabled new reviews for Poetica Coffee while investigating a surge of one-star ratings tied to the controversy.

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