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Protest at Oakland Coffee Shop That Refuses to Serve Police Officers

A tense protest took place Sunday outside a coffee shop in Oakland that has refused to serve police officers.

A group known for organizing pro-Trump rallies in Berkeley and confronted Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf about her decision to warn the public about ICE raids earlier this month showed up Sunday at Hasta Muerte Coffee, which will not serve officers in uniform and turned away an officer a few weeks ago. The shop is an employee-owned co-op.

Coffee shop customers and protesters clashed, and police responded to the scene to help de-ecscalate the tension. It was not clear whether there were any arrests. 

Workers at Hasta Muerte initially did not respond to multiple requests for comment on the policy to refuse service to police officers.

But on the shop’s Instagram account, there's a photo posted with text that reads in Spanish: "Talk to your neighbors, not the police." The post continues about an exchange with a uniformed police officer on Feb. 16, and very clearly it states: "We have a policy of asking police to leave for the physical and emotional safety of our customers and ourselves."

The Oakland Police Officers Association sent the shop a letter, asking to open a dialogue about its policy.

The sergeant who was turned away from the shop a few weeks ago said he was surprised but walked out without incident and without any coffee. He said he’s looking forward to talking with the shop owners to build a better relationship with them and the rest of the community.

Hasta Muerte, which means "until death," in Spanish, is located in Oakland's Fruitvale district.[[476388893, C]]

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