A San Francisco restaurant is being slammed on social media by the San Francisco Police Officers Association for barring on-duty police officers from entering the establishment while armed.
Reem’s California, a local Arab street food restaurant and bakery chain, has implemented a policy prohibiting armed police officers from entering their business located on Mission St.
While the policy has supposedly been in place for some time, the store recently made headlines when a San Francisco police officer was denied service.
The San Francisco Police Officers Association explained the incident in a post thread on X, formerly known as Twitter — condemning the “bigoted” and “discriminatory” policy. They also asked Reem’s California to put up a sign so that officers know “not to spend money” there, as the officer who was denied service was not aware of the policy when he walked in because there was no sign on the door.
“NO COPS ALLOWED. That’s the confirmed policy of the bakery chain Reem’s,” the post read. “One of our officers was denied service last weekend because he was in uniform. Reem’s confirms that they will not serve anyone armed and in uniform. Presumably, this includes members of the US Military.”
“We are not asking Reem’s or any business with a bigoted policy to serve our officers,” a follow-up post read. “We’re asking them to own their discriminatory policy & and put up a sign so we know not to spend money in your establishment—on or off duty. We took the liberty of designing one for them.”
We are not asking Reem’s or any business with a bigoted policy to serve our officers. We’re asking them to own their discriminatory policy & and put up a sign so we know not to spend money in your establishment—on or off duty. We took the liberty of designing one for them. pic.twitter.com/aITQFLOFG0
— San Francisco POA (@SanFranciscoPOA) August 24, 2023
Reem’s California has published a post on Instagram attempting to explain their policy — claiming that it was implemented to show solidarity with minorities and to keep people “safer.”
“Reem’s has a deep commitment to uplifting social and racial justice in our communities,” the Instagram post read. “This includes fostering an environment of safety for our staff and customers. In a time of increased gun violence — particularly impacting people of color, youth, and queer people — we believe that maintaining a strict policy of prohibiting guns in our restaurant keeps us safer.”
“Many members of our community have been impacted by gun violence, whether that be experience on the streets of San Francisco, having come from war or occupation, or having increased fears due to a growing climate of political extremism,” the restaurant’s post continued. “All too often, Black and brown people and poor people are the victims of this violence. At Reems, we aim to provide a space where people can eat delicious Arab food and work together to strengthen our community without fear of violence or harassment. We invite our community to step up and join us in creating that culture of care and resilience.”
In a statement to Mission Local, the restaurant noted that they would welcome officers to return without their weapons when they are not on duty.
“This policy is for armed officers, and we let police officers know that we welcome them back to our establishment when they’re off-duty and unarmed,” the statement read.
