Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy will no longer be sending at least one Barstool pub patron who allegedly engaged in antisemitic behavior to tour a former Nazi concentration camp.
Portnoy’s initial decision to send two customers to a former Nazi concentration camp came on Sunday, the day after they allegedly partook in an antisemitic encounter at a Barstool pub in Philadelphia. In a video posted on Saturday, a woman who presumably works at the pub as a server, appears to be holding a sign with an anti-Jewish message on it. A man nearby can be heard repeating the phrase.
Portnoy confirmed that two of the bar’s employees have been fired as a result.
The Philadelphia bar, located on Sansom Street, posted a statement on Monday, saying it was "saddened, embarrassed, and frustrated by the deplorable actions of a customer and misguided staff acting outside the scope of their duties."
“We take all forms of discrimination incredibly seriously and are particularly upset by actions taken against our Jewish patrons, colleagues, partners, and friends,” the statement continued.
In addition to terminating the employment of the bar employees that were allegedly involved, Portnoy announced that he would also be sending the two customers involved in the antisemitic incident to Auschwitz, Poland, as a "teaching moment." The idea, as conceived by Portnoy, would be to have them learn about the Holocaust "rather than ruin a couple 20 year olds lives."
But Portnoy revoked the offer for at least one of the customers after he “did a 180” and claimed to be a citizen journalist documenting the situation.
“Long story short this 21 year old child is talking [sic] zero accountability for his actions,” Portnoy said in an Instagram Story posted Monday. “Whatever ramifications come [sic] his way he 100% earned and deserved.”
It is unknown if Portnoy has revoked the other customer’s trip as well.
On Sunday, Temple University president John Fry addressed the incident in a letter to the campus, stating that “Temple students were involved in an antisemitic incident at an off-campus location” on Saturday. One student suspected of being involved has been placed on interim suspension.
“Any additional students who are found to be involved will face strict disciplinary action under the Student Conduct Code, up to and including expulsion,” Fry added.
Kappa Delta Rho, a fraternity at Temple University, also wrote on its website that it is conducting an investigation of its own, as the customer involved is allegedly a member.
Xavier Romano, executive director of the national fraternity, said in the statement, “To be clear, our organization firmly opposes all forms of hate, which have no place in our fraternity.”
Portnoy, who is Jewish, said he has noticed a rise in antisemitic behavior in the last year.
“I’ve had more hate, more antisemitism in the last year, year-and-a-half, than I’ve ever had doing it,” Portnoy said of his 20 years of running Barstool Sports.
