Tbilisi vegan cafe appeal over meat-wielding 'extremists'

A vegan cafe in Tbilisi has appealed for public solidarity after being invaded by alleged ultra-nationalists wielding grilled meat and sausages.

More than a dozen men stormed into the Kiwi cafe in the Georgian capital on Sunday evening, the cafe said, shouting and throwing meat at patrons.

A brawl erupted but the attackers fled before police arrived.

The cafe has appealed for public support, saying it was no prank but a case of intimidation by neo-Nazis.
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.
It later told the BBC it had received strong messages of solidarity - from Georgia and abroad - but that people had also left angry comments trying "to defend those fascists".

It said it was also appealing for financial contributions to install security cameras in case of repeat incidents.

The cafe statement blames Sunday's incident on the group of men who came into the premises, talking loudly, throwing meat and smoking, and then "yelling, laughing, and talking to us sarcastically".

These people "were neo-Nazis... who support fascist ideas", the cafe said.

Some minor injuries were sustained.

There is an irony in the article and the name of the poster....are you reading like specialized publications for meat haters?

when I saw this article I knew I had to be the one to create the thread.

Indeed. The BBC is mainstream, but I wouldn't have even clicked on that article. I bet you have alerts set up!