'Jews Must Shower Before Swimming' Sign Sparks Outrage at Hotel in Swiss Alps
A Jewish family was surprised to have encountered a couple of signages that seemed to be anti-Semitic during their stay at a hotel in the Swiss Alps last week.
The said signages were addressed to only the hotel's Jewish guests, requiring them to follow certain rules for the duration of their stay in the establishment. This surprised the guests and sparked outrage in the Jewish community when the issue made it to the news.
As reported by International Business Times, one of the notes was positioned by the entrance to the hotel's pool area, while the other was placed on a refrigerator door.
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Sacha Rojtman Dratwa, the Head of the World Jewish Congress, posted an image of the pool signage on Twitter.
The refrigerator sign, on the other hand, reportedly stated that Jewish guests were allowed to use it only during certain hours.
"For our Jewish guests: You are allowed to access the refrigerator only in the following hours: 10:00-11:00 and 16:30-17:30," the sign read, according to reports. "I hope you understand that our team does not like being harassed every time," it added.
The family who reported about the anti-Semitic signages even said that they did not dare to use the refrigerator at all because they were afraid of getting into any argument with the staff.
The name Ruth Thomann was also written under the note. She is said to be the owner of Paradies Apartment House, the establishment in question, in Arosa.
However, according to Baltimore Jewish Life, Thomann told Jewish and Israel news site The Algemeiner earlier this week that she had "used the wrong words" upon making the controversial notes and that these have already been removed on Sunday after her hotel made the headlines.
She also denied that she and her hotel do not support anti-Semitism, explaining that the use of the refrigerator in the hotel's kitchen was supposed to be a privilege that is reserved for their Jewish guests, who are traveling with kosher food.
Thomann added, "The refrigerators in the rooms are small, so I told them, 'You can store some small things with our stuff, but don't go in every time. The reason for this policy was to ensure the hotel's staff could carry out their duties smoothly."
