(Adnkronos) – A group of neo-Nazis marched through the streets of Columbus, the capital of Ohio, chanting racist and supremacist slogans and waving swastika flags. Although there were just over a dozen extremists, videos of their march through the streets of a neighborhood with many restaurants immediately made the rounds on social media, drawing condemnation from city and state authorities.
“Neo-Nazis, with their faces covered by red masks, circulated through the streets of Columbus, waving flags with racist symbols and uttering vile and racist words against people of color and Jews,” was the condemnation on X by Mike DeWine, the Republican governor of Ohio. “In this state there is no place for hatred, intolerance, anti-Semitism or violence and we must denounce them wherever we see them.”
The Anti-Defamation League said the Columbus events were similar to hundreds of similar events recorded in the past 18 months across the country: small, unannounced demonstrations to avoid counter-protests, explains Oren Segal, vice president of the League’s Center on Extremists. “The goal is to create fear in communities and be photographed and filmed,” said Segal, who along with his team follows the activities of white supremacists, explaining that the Columbus action was claimed by a group that calls itself the Hate Club.
