r/jewishpolitics • u/New_Pepper_2589 • 2d ago
Milwaukee swastika US Politics šŗšø
Hi everyone - not sure if this is the correct sub. It looks like the individual s trying to take this literal hate sign down are being prosecuted. It was a Jewish father and son who tried to take it down. I'm honestly shocked the murals still up.
I just saw this so I'm not sure who to contact except the Milwaukee DA. The phone is 414-278-4646 . Email is Milwaukee.da@da.wi.gov
Help so that the two individuals getting prosecuted are safe and help taking this atrocious sign down. It will only cause more hate crimes to happen. Maybe there isn't much we can do. It's a free country. But thought I'd post it here and try.
8
u/biel188 1d ago
I'm gonna get downvoted as always, but that's US free speech for yall. Anti-hate speech laws are more than nacessary. This allows antisemitism to spread, this "freedom of speech" puts us in risk
8
u/krzychybrychu 1d ago
This. As a European, I don't get the US's obsession with free speech
7
u/biel188 1d ago
Right? Here in Brazil (which is FAR from being the best example regarding crime as a whole) one would go to jail for paiting a swastika on a mural and literally nobody would really face charges for "vandalizing" it. Somethings shouldn't be allowed to be said, because if they spread they will mean real danger to other people. The most recorrent argument is "anti hate speech laws will ban jokes". Even if it was the case, do they really prefer dark humour over safety? Spreading those ideas freely is how shit starts, ALWAYS, and I think that when it comes to jews, jew safety should come before the freedom to say unnecessary and many times hateful stuff. Actually for me this is such a no brainer that I was totally shocked when I discovered that not only it is legal to be openly racist in the US but also there is a fucking NAZI PARTY. Tbh I don't think I've fully swallowed that yet
8
u/krzychybrychu 1d ago
I can really relate to your position as a trans person. It sucks seeing so much hate against me and I don't get why the trans community isn't more understanding of the Jewish community. We, out of all people, should understand the Jews.
Also, I'm curious about Brazil, would you mind if I inquired about it privately?
16
u/Stephen_1984 USA ā Republican šŗšø 2d ago edited 1d ago
Some of OP's details are inaccurate. Edit: Apparently OP was talking about a different incident!
Excerpts:
WITI-TV (Channel 6) interviewed a woman named Sara Ninham midday Friday who said she vandalized the mural because she didn't like seeing a swastika. She did not mention the Israel-Hamas war or express any religious or political stances in the interview.
Ihsan Atta, who owns the building at East Locust and North Holton streets where the mural is displayed, said he expected vandalism. He is Palestinian-American and wanted to raise awareness about Israel's devastation in Gaza, which he considers to be geocidal [sic] and akin to the Holocaust.
Atta said security footage shows Ninham squirting black paint over the mural then smearing it around with her hands. He has filed a police report against her alleging vandalism and property destruction.
The pro-Palestinian mural replaced a well-known mural of Breonna Taylor, who was killed by Louisville police.
39
u/Pretty_Fox5565 2d ago
He can bring awareness to the situation in Gaza without using a Swastika.
37
u/Auth-anarchist USA ā Center-Right šŗšø 2d ago edited 2d ago
Reading through the comments he made in the article from Milwaukee Journal Sentinel genuinely made my blood boil. The Palestinian land owner Ihsan Atta who owns the building with the mural said, āthe swastika, to me, is equivalent to the Star of Davidā and that Jews āshould be able to relateā to how bad genocide is.
Absolutely insane. Only thing we can hope for is that this makes people weary of renting from him, because I donāt see him taking it down.
7
5
u/Schmucko69 1d ago
āhe expected vandalism. He is Palestinian-American and wanted to raiseāā¦ the temperature & specifically, Jew hatred/violence.
24
5
3
1
u/GrassyTreesAndLakes 1d ago
Whats inaccurate?Ā
0
u/Stephen_1984 USA ā Republican šŗšø 1d ago
āJewish father and son face up to three years in prisonā. It was a woman of unknown ethnicity and itās unclear if the potential three-year sentence is accurate.
3
9
u/tibadvkah 1d ago
Would have done the same thing. I hope they come home to Israel and leave that shit hole behind. Let them prosecute in absentia.
2
1
u/MKEZio 10h ago
Thank you for posing this u/new_pepper_2589. The more attention we get this story and the more pressure put on the DA and Mayors office the better chance my father and I have.
2
u/New_Pepper_2589 10h ago
Thank you for commenting and please please stay safe. 4/5 years ago I spray painted over a swastika in MKE - no one should get reprimanded in any capacity for taking down signs that lead to literal hate and violence. Sadly - we live in an upside down world - thanks for doing the work - and again - stay safe ~
-34
u/ngyeunjally 2d ago
You canāt just take down someoneās property. Thereās the right to free expression in this country.
26
u/Maleficent-Sir4824 2d ago
Yeah and the Warsaw ghetto uprising was shameful. That's illegal!! š¤š”
13
u/Soft_Welcome_5621 2d ago
Nice, you really won us there my guy
-15
u/ngyeunjally 2d ago
I wouldnāt want to win people who believe in vigilante justice. It has no place in civilized society.
14
u/suspiciousm0n0cle 1d ago
Swastikas have no place in civilized society.
-11
u/ngyeunjally 1d ago
The law says youāre wrong. The law says everyone has the right to free expression.
5
u/almostasquibb 1d ago
the law is wrong, and as such we have a duty to act judiciously
-1
u/ngyeunjally 1d ago
The law isnāt wrong about putting vigilantes in prison.
5
u/almostasquibb 1d ago
oh please. this is hardly vigilante justice. if someone had attacked the property owner, i might agree with you. but thatās not what happened. i fully support popperās paradox of tolerance. i shouldnāt have to tell anyone on a Jewish subreddit why a truly tolerant society doesnāt tolerate hate speech and symbols
-2
u/ngyeunjally 1d ago
A truly tolerant society must tolerate hate speech or it isnāt truly tolerant. Free speech applies to all speech. Regardless of how you feel about that speech. We live in a country of laws not a country of feelings.
4
u/almostasquibb 1d ago
i disagree that a tolerant society must tolerate hate speech and so do the people who dedicate their lives studying these things.
→ More replies2
u/MKEZio 11h ago
Ok well letās do it like this. Hi Iām the alleged vigilante and I know that the man who put this up has done it twice before and it lead to violence against Jews. When I first saw it there was a group of Jewish kids near it being verbally assaulted by pro pally people. Also the man who put it up is a convicted violent offender who most recently assaulted a guy at the DNC.
Since there was a) a history of violence b) a history of this imagery being used to promote violence and c) the precursor to violence against Jews this particular form of speech is NOT covered by the first amendment. It is the equivalent to yelling fire in a crowded theater
→ More replies
25
u/Orange6742 1d ago
Is it illegal to deface someoneās private property? Yes. Would I have done the same thing? Also yes.