Just weeks after a group of neo-Nazis gathered near a historically Black town in Ohio to display swastikas and yell racial slurs, a man was caught spreading Ku Klux Klan flyers throughout the area.
On February 7, about a dozen people dressed in black and wearing red face masks stood on an overpass near Lincoln Heights, waving flags with swastikas, as captured by traffic cameras.
Images and videos of the protest and the subsequent standoff between Black residents and neo-Nazis circulated widely on social media.
Local law enforcement intervened and ended the rally, but none of the demonstrators were arrested despite using racial slurs and hate speech to terrorize Black drivers and pedestrians.
Days after the demonstration, several armed citizens were seen patrolling Lincoln Heights’ streets to counter the wave of fear and unease among residents who were concerned that authorities would allow the neo-Nazi group to leave without consequences.
Over the weekend, the community was once again targeted after dozens of flyers attributed to the Trinity White Knights Ku Klux Klan were discovered throughout the town.
On Sunday, February 23, police stopped William Bader, 47, after he was seen throwing flyers from his car.
According to WLWT, when police searched his car, they discovered the flyers, a white sheet “commonly worn by KKK members,” and a homemade banner that read “Peace and Love” and was hung on the overpass following the neo-Nazi rally.
Bader received only one ticket for littering during the pamphlet distribution. He was not arrested and does not face any criminal charges.
“The Sheriff’s Office does not condone or agree with hate speech perpetrated by anyone, including Nazis and the KKK,” Hamilton County Sheriff Charmaine McGuffey said in a statement.
“The sheriff’s office remains committed to working with the residents in the village of Lincoln Heights to ensure their safety.”
Advocates, local law enforcement, city officials, and faith leaders recently met to discuss how to address the hateful incidents that have plagued the Lincoln Heights community in recent weeks.
The sheriff, who attended the meeting, stated that she and her department are “doing our best to hold these people accountable.”
“That kind of hatred is not acceptable anywhere, so we will run them out of town and out of the country,” said Cincinnati Vice Mayor Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney. “Nazis are not welcome in America; we do not tolerate such behavior. “We don’t do hate here.”
