The Kiwi Cafe, a vegan restaurant in Tiblisi, the capital of the eastern former Soviet republic of Georgia, was attacked by a mob of jeering, violent men who threw meat at the patrons and shouted, resulting in a brawl.
The cafe's proprietors say that the attackers were ultra-nationalist neo-Nazis, who singled out the restaurant because it is a hub for LGBT people, political activists, and people who listen to alternative music.
Neofascism and ultra-nationalism are on the rise in Georgia and much of the region, attended by homophobia and transphobia (it's not just the United States).
It said it was already the target of some local hostility due to its patrons' alternative lifestyles – "the way we look, music that we listen to, ideas we support, and the fact that we don't eat meat" and backing of causes such as rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people.
"During these hard times you can support us just by visiting our cafe, we will be very grateful if you come to show everyone that here are a lot of us who care about the issue!" the Kiwi cafe said in a statement on Facebook.
Tbilisi vegan cafe appeal over meat-wielding 'extremists'
[BBC]
(Image: Reunion sausages, David Monniaux, CC-BY-SA)
