Second Cup takes back Montreal franchise over hateful incident

Warning: This story and video contain material that may be disturbing to some viewers.

Second Cup Café has taken back two of its franchise locations in Montreal following allegations of hateful remarks and gestures made by the franchisee in a video that was widely circulated online during a pro-Palestinian protest on Thursday.

The locations are at the Jewish General Hospital.

In a statement shared on its social media accounts, the coffee chain said the franchisee’s actions breached their agreement and violated the company’s values of inclusion and community.

“Second Cup has zero tolerance for hate speech. In coordination with the hospital, we’ve shut down the franchisee’s café and are terminating their franchise agreement,” the company said.

The footage shows a woman wearing a keffiyeh, black sunglasses, and a medical mask, chanting “the final solution is coming your way.”

The video also appears to show the same woman giving a Nazi salute during the protest.

Montreal police said on Monday the incident is under investigation by its hate crimes section. 

Peter Mammas, the president of Foodtastic, Second Cup’s parent company, told CTV News that they were made aware of the video on Saturday afternoon.

Mammas said several employees identified the woman in the video as Mai Abdulhadi, the franchisee of the Second Cup café at the hospital.

“Right after I found out, I actually called the president of the hospital, and we had a discussion, and we assured them that we would do the right thing, and that's what we proceeded to do,” Mammas said.

In a statement to CTV News, the CIUSSS West-Central Montreal, which oversees the Jewish General Hospital, said it supports Second Cup’s decision to terminate the franchise agreement.

“We fully support Second Cup’s decision to take swift and decisive action in this matter,” it noted.

The statement goes on to say that the organization is deeply committed to fostering a culture of inclusion and stands firmly against anti-Semitism and all forms of discrimination and hate speech.

On Sunday afternoon, Second Cup said it would retain and continue to pay the franchise’s staff until new management is in place at the Jewish General Hospital location.  

CTV News has been unable to reach Abdulhadi for comment. Her social media accounts have been disabled.

Hundreds of protesters gathered outside Concordia University on Thursday after nearly 85,000 students across Quebec voted in favour of a two-day “strike” to demand that their institutions divest from companies they allege have ties to Israel and weapons manufacturers, and to call for an end to the siege on Gaza.

On Friday, three protesters were arrested after an anti-NATO protest turned violent, with windows being smashed and cars set on fire.

A Montreal police (SPVM) spokesperson confirmed the arrest of a 22-year-old woman for obstructing police work and assaulting an officer, as well as two men, ages 22 and 28, for obstructing police.

All three were released with a promise to appear in court at a later date. More arrests are expected.

Politicians from the Prime Minister’s cabinet, opposition parties, and Quebec leaders condemned the violence during Friday’s anti-NATO demonstration.