Jews protest at Bentleigh hair salon over alleged discrimination

Around 150 people gathered outside Juniper Hair Salon in the Melbourne suburb of Bentleigh on Monday evening following allegations that the salon owner refused service to an Israeli customer and subjected him to verbal abuse.

The protest, organised by Jewish community group Lions of Zion, took place at 5pm outside the salon in response to the incident that occurred the previous Monday.

The Israeli man, who prefers not to be named, told The AJN what happened when he attended his booked appointment.

“I just came to cut my hair on Monday. The owner asked me where I’m from, because I had an accent. I said, I’m Israeli. And she said, I’m sorry I can’t cut your hair. And when I left, she called me a baby killer,” he said.

The customer said he intends to pursue legal action, saying he was determined to make sure no one – Israeli or otherwise – has to go through what he experienced.