US spiritual hot springs retreat discriminated against Jewish musician, lawsuit says

A lawsuit filed last week that aims to expand civil rights protections for US Jews claims that a “spirit-oriented” hot springs retreat in California discriminated against a Jewish musician due to his Zionism.

Mikey Pauker, a Jewish rock musician, said the Harbin Hot Springs Retreat Center canceled his 2024 Hanukkah concert after online criticism of his Zionism, causing him emotional distress and financial losses. He described the cancellation as a “tipping point” after experiencing years of antisemitism in the music world.

“It’s a heartbreaking case for me because I’ve spent so much time there. It’s a place that I receive so much rejuvenation,” Pauker said in an interview. “I feel like it’s got to stop with me, and I’m done laying down.”

The defendant in the lawsuit is Heart Consciousness Church, the nonprofit owner and operator of the 3,000-acre Harbin Hot Springs Retreat Center in Middletown, California, north of San Francisco. The center hosts guests and provides entertainment and activities such as concerts, dances, yoga, holidays, “moon ceremonies,” and clothing-optional sunbathing and spa services. Other defendants include activists who pressured the center to drop Pauker’s show.

The lawsuit stems from a social media post Pauker shared at the start of the Gaza war. On October 7, 2023, as Hamas was carrying out its massacre in southern Israel, Pauker posted an image of a military tank on Facebook and wrote, “I stand with Israel.”

More than a year later, in December 2024, Pauker and Harbin signed a contract for a Hanukkah performance at the retreat. The Hanukkah show he planned would have included a candle-lighting ceremony, was not political, and would not have discussed the conflict.

The following week, Pauker saw that a Facebook user had posted on Harbin’s Facebook page that Pauker plays “genocide music” and demanded that others “Ask Harbin not to support genocide and cancel him.” The Facebook user also responded to a photo showing Pauker during a religious ritual, accusing him of playing “devotional terrorist music.”

Shortly after, an events manager at Harbin told Pauker that the concert had been canceled due to “negative feedback.”

After the cancellation, the Facebook user emailed Pauker to celebrate, saying, “Keep your psychotic Zionist genocidal shit out of our peaceful communities.”

“I am watching you and will have canceled anywhere you go. Maybe you should just get the fuck out of here and go to ‘Israel.’ You are so proud of your ‘country’ and its genocidal war crimes why not go take part in them coward,” he said, according to the lawsuit.

Pauker said he experienced panic attacks after the message, interpreting it as a threat. He contacted law enforcement and received trauma counseling. He has since struggled with anxiety and depression, disrupting his work and studies and causing nightmares.

Pauker shared the threatening statement with Harbin. A manager at the venue told Pauker that Harbin canceled the event due to complaints about his “Zionist views” and referred to Pauker’s October 7 Facebook post.

In addition to the emotional distress, the canceled concert also caused Pauker financial losses. He usually sells around $1,500 worth of merchandise at shows such as the planned Hanukkah performance. Also, after negative publicity surrounding the cancellation, other venues he normally performs at did not contact him for further appearances or respond to his outreach, causing an estimated $50,000 in losses, the lawsuit said.

Harbin has hosted other performers who have expressed harsh criticism of Israel, including a singer who posted an image of a burning Israeli flag, quotes from the late Hamas terror chief Yahya Sinwar, called Israel supporters colonists and accused Israel of being a terrorist state.

The lawsuit was filed on Friday in the federal Northern District of California court.

A lawyer representing the retreat told The Times of Israel that he could not comment on legal matters, but could confirm that “decisions regarding events and performances are guided by our longstanding values of respect, healing, and guest, performer and staff safety.”

Harbin said the “difficult decision” to cancel the retreat was due to security concerns after “potential threats of violence on social media.” The retreat lacked the security staff to handle the “unacceptable risk to everyone involved,” the retreat told The Times of Israel.

“Harbin is a proud supporter of cultural and religious celebrations,” the center said. “We stand firmly against hate or intimidation of any kind and remain dedicated to fostering an environment where all guests feel welcome, safe, and respected and look forward to welcoming Mr. Pauker back to Harbin to play at a later date, when appropriate security measures are in place.”

The lawsuit builds on a case filed earlier this year by Felix Hasson, a Jewish professional gamer from New York. Hasson was banned from gaming competitions in the New York region after online activists complained to tournament organizers about his social media support for Israel. The National Jewish Advocacy Center, a nonprofit, is representing both plaintiffs.

The lawsuits, like others filed by Jewish Israel supporters around the US, argue that Zionism is a facet of the faith and not a political position. Jewish legal advocates have used the interpretation of Zionism to protect pro-Israel Jews and combat anti-Zionism under US civil rights protections that cover religious beliefs, but not politics. The argument has been widely used in cases involving Title VI of the US Civil Rights Act of 1964, which bars discrimination in programs that receive federal financial assistance, such as universities. The argument has not been tested under Title II of the Civil Rights Act, a law that ensures equality in “public accommodations,” including sports arenas and music venues, without discrimination based on race, color, religion or national origin.

The Pauker and Hasson cases both aim to expand Title II protections to Zionist Jews, opening a new front in an evolving legal battle that has gained steam since October 7. Jewish groups like NJAC, the Lawfare Project and the Brandeis Center are taking to the courts to advocate for Jews, while on the other side, groups like Palestine Legal, the Council on American-Islamic Relations and the New York Branch of the American Civil Liberties Union have filed lawsuits for pro-Palestinian activists. Some universities, like Columbia, are being battered from both sides.

Both lawsuits also accuse the venues of a double standard because they barred pro-Israel individuals but welcomed those who were harshly critical of the Jewish state.

The two cases are “seeking to get case law to establish that discrimination against Jews for being Zionists constitutes unlawful antisemitic discrimination against Title II,” said Matthew Mainen, a lawyer from NJAC.

Mainen said the Pauker and Hasson cases are “symbiotic” and could reinforce each other. If one of the courts rules in favor of the plaintiffs, the other lawsuit could cite the positive ruling to bolster its case. The California case could also complement Hasson’s lawsuit by opening the Title II front in a different federal court of appeals.

In another new tactic, the two lawsuits target the businesses’ patrons who asked the venues to bar Zionists, in addition to the venues.

“That almost never happens in civil rights law,” Mainen said.

The lawsuits have been filed against offbeat venues — video game competitions and the hot springs — because some smaller businesses lack the legal savvy to avoid discrimination, Mainen said.

“Most big corporations have an HR department or have a legal adviser. If I walk into a Best Buy, the store manager has probably received some decent training on Title II, so it’s not likely to happen in one of these big corporate chains where managers know better,” Mainen said.

Pauker said he had visited the hot springs for years. The retreat has invited him back as a guest, not a performer, but he said he would no longer feel welcome there.

“It was essentially this community that was really dear to my heart,” he said. “When I’m done with tours, I would go there and go soaking or play gigs.”

Pauker says his music is pro-peace, he urges dialogue to stymie conflict, and he participates in interfaith events with members of a mosque in his town in Orange County, including joint Shabbat dinners and iftar Ramandan events. In addition to music, Pauker is studying to become a rabbi and a cantor at the Academy of Jewish Religion in New York.

He was devastated by the show’s cancellation but was not surprised. New Age communities are rife with age-old antisemitic tropes and conspiracies, such as the belief that secret cabals of Jews pull the strings of power from the shadows, he said. The communities are similar to other leftist spaces when it comes to antisemitism, such as universities, he added.

“It goes to show a common blind spot in spiritual communities where they see a Jew and they’re not welcome because either they’re too white, or they’re too Jewish, or they have a connection to Israel,” he said. “There’s always a reason to scapegoat us.”

Other Jewish performers, such as the musician Matisyahu, have had concerts canceled since October 7. Jewish authors have also been barred from literary events.

Pauker hopes the lawsuit will prevent discrimination against Jews and other groups.

“I feel like if an organization like that, a church, can discriminate against me, then they could do that to other minority groups as well,” he said. “How I’m feeling now is just grateful that we’re able to pursue and find justice.”