Swastika Vandalism in Pfiffner Pioneer Park

A good friend of mine told me she saw a swastika drawn on the sidewalk in Pfiffner Pioneer Park while on her morning walk.

Some may see a symbol of hate and be able to just brush it off and continue with life. I wish I had that privilege. That atrocious assortment of lines represents the destruction of too many people I love for me to sit back and do nothing.

My act of resistance is informing readers that there is a crusty group of neo-Nazis in our city.

Swastikas are symbols of hatred and murder of innocents. The appearance of this smut on sidewalks means someone is either an actual neo-Nazi or thinks the act of butchering over 6 million Jews, disabled people, homosexuals and people of color is a joke that can be scrawled in a public place.

One cannot be a proud American and a neo-Nazi. We had a whole war about this, remember? The entire world was involved.  Our country fought to stop the Nazis and their perverse view of minority groups.  To see a swastika on the sidewalks of an American city is not only a disgrace to minorities, but also to all Americans who fought to protect us from the malice represented by the symbol.

People cannot change the color of their skin, they cannot change who they love, and they should not have to. The cognitive dissonance that accompanies a hatred of someone for merely being born is something I hope to never understand.

Some may read this editorial that think I am just another hot-headed social justice warrior. They would be absolutely right.  

I refuse to apologize or feel ashamed for possessing basic human decency. At least I will know that I stood for something other than my own selfish survival on this planet. Do not bother sending me emails, come into my office and look me in the eyes when you tell me I am overreacting to this foul symbol and all it represents.

I am putting up such a fuss about this because if we allow this grubby hatred in our community, we are no better than those bystanders in pre-Nazi Germany who simply shrugged their shoulders and said, “Everyone is entitled to an opinion.”  

Dump out your water bottles onto a pathetically chalk-drawn swastika and fight the filth. Chalk can also be purchased in the University Store in case you would like to turn a chalked swastika into the 1995 logo for a Windows computer. Do something. Desmond Tutu said, ” If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.”

 

Genevieve Adamski

Editor-In-Chief

gadam590@uwsp.edu

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