Pakistani Owner of Swanky Santa Monica Hotel: “Get the [expletive] Jews out of my Pool”
Latest update: July 31st, 2012
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The Hotel Shangri-La in Santa Monica, California.
Photo Credit: Promotional image.
An upscale hotel on a Santa Monica, California, beach is an odd place to be singled out from a crowd and removed because you are Jewish, but that’s what happened to 18 young professionals who are telling their story to a jury in a discrimination trial taking place in Santa Monica Superior Court this week.
Ari Ryan is the grandson of a Ukranian Jew who lost most of his family in the Holocaust and narrowly escaped death at the hands of the Nazis. Ryan’s grandfather moved to Israel in 1942 and served as a captain in the Israel Defense Forces.
Seventy years later Ryan says he got a small taste of what his grandfather lived through, but rather than in the forests of the Ukraine, it took place at an upscale hotel in Santa Monica. Ryan and more than a dozen others have brought a lawsuit alleging anti-Semitic discrimination against them by a multi-millionaire Muslim American hotel owner.
Two years ago Ryan and other twenty- and thirty-something Jews planned to raise money to send children of fallen IDF soldiers to camp with a charity event at the Hotel Shangri-La in Santa Monica, California.
On the morning of July 11, 2010, Ryan and others arrived at the hotel and began setting up Friends of the IDF banners, literature and piles of shirts for the event guests.
But the event was aborted after, according to one employee’s sworn testimony, the hotel’s owner told staff members, “Get the [expletive deleted] Jews out of my pool.” Then the hotel security and other employees began removing the materials and ordering the guests to leave.
Ryan said, “Anyone wearing a blue wristband,” which identified them as being with the Friends of the IDF, “was asked to get out of the swimming pool and the hot tub.” In fact, no one who was identifiable as Jewish was so much as “allowed to dip their feet in the water.”
Tehmina (Tamie) Adaya, a Pakistani-American Muslim, is the owner of the Shangri-La. Her father, Ahmad Adaya, was a founding partner of the California real estate company IDS Real Estate Group. He also was a founder and benefactor of the New Horizon School for Muslim religious education in Southern California.
The father bought the Shangri-La Hotel in the 1980‘s and the daughter took it over in 2004, investing $30 million to renovate the property into a design award-winning opulent destination. In addition to the hotel, Adaya runs an upscale artist collective called the Crown Jewels which she blogs about at her site “Culture Shock to Culture Architect.”
In the cross-complaint she initially filed, Adaya claimed Ryan and his friends were trespassing on the Shangri-La property and became unruly.
“Not so,” said James Turken, managing partner of the California office of the DC-based law firm Dickstein, Shapiro, attorney for the plaintiffs. He explained that Adaya withdrew her complaint after he interviewed her, under oath, and she was unable to substantiate any of the allegations she had made.
Turken told The Jewish Press that witnesses will testify that, in addition to cursing the Jews and yelling at her staff to remove them from the pool, Adaya was heard saying, “my family will disown me,” and that her “investors will be furious,” if the plaintiffs remained on site.
The defense claims there was no discrimination and that, instead, the promoters of the event had failed to properly schedule the event with the hotel, and therefore they were trespassing.
According to Turken, however, all the necessary arrangements had been made in advance, as evidenced by the initial assistance provided by the Shangri-La employees, which included putting up a rope and stanchions and a check-in table. What’s more, he said, the day before the event “the head of hotel security gave a briefing to the staff to prepare them for the crowd of 150 that were expected to attend.”
The removal from the pool of Jews who were wearing Jewish-identified wristbands evokes a similar selection process of seventy years ago. Ryan, recalling his grandfather’s legacy, said “I felt the weight of standing up to what he had to live through.”
The plaintiffs are seeking $ 1 million from Adaya and the Shangri-La Hotel for emotional distress, attorneys’ fees and other statutory damages.
tell a friendAbout the Author: Lori Lowenthal Marcus is the US correspondent for The Jewish Press. She is a recovered lawyer who previously practiced First Amendment law and taught in Philadelphia-area graduate and law schools.
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233 Responses to “Pakistani Owner of Swanky Santa Monica Hotel: “Get the [expletive] Jews out of my Pool””
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BOYCOTT HOTEL! IN the name of the one and only God Israel!
A fact missing from the article is that at least in Israel, Jews patronize Muslim owned businesses every day and (their money) is certainly welcomed. The reverse is also true in Israel. About 20% of Israel consists of Muslim/ Arab citizens. They carry an active Israeli passport. Some refused Israeli citizenship after the 6 Day War, even though it was offered.
Arabs have served in the Knesset (Israeli legislature) since the very first days of its existence. In Israel, Arabs and Jews work closely together in almost every professional venue imaginable, but especially in medicine, surgery and nursing.
Hadassah Hospital treats any and all Muslims who come to them for free, and they get the best possible medical/surgical care.
Just a few facts NEVER presented in Western Media.
sanjosemike
A fact missing from the article is that at least in Israel, Jews patronize Muslim owned businesses every day and (their money) is certainly welcomed. The reverse is also true in Israel. About 20% of Israel consists of Muslim/ Arab citizens. They carry an active Israeli passport. Some refused Israeli citizenship after the 6 Day War, even though it was offered.
Arabs have served in the Knesset (Israeli legislature) since the very first days of its existence. In Israel, Arabs and Jews work closely together in almost every professional venue imaginable, but especially in medicine, surgery and nursing.
Hadassah Hospital treats any and all Muslims who come to them for free, and they get the best possible medical/surgical care.
Just a few facts NEVER presented in Western Media.
sanjosemike
Where’s the outrage? WHERE’S THE OUTRAGE! I trust that my Jewish friends will sue the owner’s socks off. The U.S. attorney’s office has filed hundreds of cases protecting Muslims. Now, let’s see of there any courage to protect Jews!
Where’s the outrage? WHERE’S THE OUTRAGE! I trust that my Jewish friends will sue the owner’s socks off. The U.S. attorney’s office has filed hundreds of cases protecting Muslims. Now, let’s see of there any courage to protect Jews!
What happened to my comment? I mention Kahane, JDL, KACH, and it gets removed?
This Pakistani hotel owner was so wrapped up in his hatred for Israel that he forgot ” he only hates Zionists and has nothing against Jews, some of my best friends are Jews”.
get the fucking mudslums out of MY country!
This is very common of Pakistanis–people like this should never be allowed to immigrate to the USA!
This is very common of Pakistanis–people like this should never be allowed to immigrate to the USA!
this sure was kept quiet – as a travel agent I am extremely glad I saw this article so I know where not to send my clients.
this sure was kept quiet – as a travel agent I am extremely glad I saw this article so I know where not to send my clients.
Wow, so even this story starts with the Holocoust-narrative. Why am I not surprised?
What makes you believe this has something to do with jews? I support this man for standing up against the IDF. Its his property, and he himself can decide who to let in or out, especially if there are people promoting a racist political agenda at his space.
Stop crying. Remember the case of Rae Abileah when she protested against Netanyahu speech. Some IDF volunteer violently attacked her.
This Pakistani man deserve respect.
Wow, so even this story starts with the Holocoust-narrative. Why am I not surprised?
What makes you believe this has something to do with jews? I support this man for standing up against the IDF. Its his property, and he himself can decide who to let in or out, especially if there are people promoting a racist political agenda at his space.
Stop crying. Remember the case of Rae Abileah when she protested against Netanyahu speech. Some IDF volunteer violently attacked her.
This Pakistani man deserve respect.
This is a motherfucking outrage, you stinken pakistani bastards can suck my balls. These pieces of shit offer safe haven for terrorists and the “westernized” ones are a bunch of racists with big money. We know your religion encourages animosity towards minorities but this is the US you pieces of shit, GTFO out of America. And FUCK the liberals in Santa Monica, they are worse than these religious freaks.
This is a motherfucking outrage, you stinken pakistani bastards can suck my balls. These pieces of shit offer safe haven for terrorists and the “westernized” ones are a bunch of racists with big money. We know your religion encourages animosity towards minorities but this is the US you pieces of shit, GTFO out of America. And FUCK the liberals in Santa Monica, they are worse than these religious freaks.
How hateful, but that is Islam. I am glad the victims here (the Jewish people kicked out of the pool) sued the hotel owners for discrimination. Muslims need to be made to obey U.S. law, and police officers need to be trained that their job is to enforce U.S. law, NOT to assist Muslims to enforce Shariah law.
How hateful, but that is Islam. I am glad the victims here (the Jewish people kicked out of the pool) sued the hotel owners for discrimination. Muslims need to be made to obey U.S. law, and police officers need to be trained that their job is to enforce U.S. law, NOT to assist Muslims to enforce Shariah law.
Why was she not charged with a hate crime? She should have been. If you can be charged with a hate crime if you say anything bad about Muslims, they should be charged with hate crimes if they say anything bad only because the people are Jewish. Hate is hate, and this is pure hatred. And should not be tolerated in this country.
Why was she not charged with a hate crime? She should have been. If you can be charged with a hate crime if you say anything bad about Muslims, they should be charged with hate crimes if they say anything bad only because the people are Jewish. Hate is hate, and this is pure hatred. And should not be tolerated in this country.