Topline
Two men who attended a neo-Nazi demonstration in Orlando, Florida, over the weekend have been arrested and charged with hate crimes for allegedly attacking a Jewish motorist, according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, in an incident that drew widespread outrage.
Neo-Nazi protestors organized by the National Socialist Movement demonstrate near where the grand … [+]
Key Facts
Two men, Burt Colucci and Joshua Terrell, have been charged with battery evidencing prejudice, and another man, Jason Brown, was charged with grand theft, the Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.
David Newstat, a Jewish student at the University of Central Florida, told WOFL-TV that he was driving by the demonstration when he stopped and rolled down the window of his car to tell the group their hate wasn’t welcome, at which point demonstrators surrounded him.
Newstat then got out of his car to start recording the group, at which point he was kicked, punched, pepper-sprayed and spat on.
Widely shared videos of the demonstration showed members of the group displaying swastikas, yelling anti-Semitic slurs at passing cars and taking part in white supremacist chants.
Colucci is the leader of the group that organized the demonstration, the National Socialist Movement, which was one of the most prominent neo-Nazi groups in the U.S. until membership waned in recent years, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.
It wasn’t immediately clear if any of the men who were charged had attorneys, and they could not be reached for comment.
Crucial Quote
“I’m trying to go to the store, to Target, and I’m coming back home, and I’m being berated by Nazis,” Newstat told WOFL-TV, adding that his grandfather survived the Holocaust.
Key Background
The demonstrations and the attack largely drew swift condemnation, but there was controversy over how Gov. Ron DeSantis’ (R) office initially responded. In a since-deleted tweet DeSantis spokeswoman Christina Pushaw said, “Do we even know they’re Nazis?” while repeating shopworn conspiracy theories suggesting that far-right protesters might be Democrats in disguise. DeSantis did not address the neo-Nazi protests until Monday, when he called the demonstrators “some jackasses doing this on the street” and claimed his response, or lack thereof, was being spun into a political issue “to try to smear me.”
Tangent
A report from the American Jewish Commission released in October found nearly a quarter of American Jews had experienced anti-Semitism over the past year, and FBI data suggests Jews are the most targeted group for religiously motivated hate crimes. According to the FBI, 676 hate incidents targeting Jewish people were reported in 2020, the most recent year statistics are available.
Further Reading
Neo-Nazi group’s leader among 3 arrested in attack at Orlando demonstration (Orlando Sentinel)
UCF student says he was spit on, pepper-sprayed, punched after confronting Neo-Nazi group (WOFL-TV)
Ron DeSantis pushes back against calls to condemn neo-Nazi protests (Guardian)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicholasreimann/2022/02/04/neo-nazis-charged-with-hate-crimes-for-allegedly-attacking-jewish-motorist/