A man is facing court in Brisbane after allegedly flying a Nazi flag over a synagogue at the weekend.
As per News.com.au, a Queensland Police spokesperson revealed a complaint was received on the morning of Saturday, October 30th, after the Nazi flag was spotted hanging out the window of a building on Brisbane’s Margaret Street, which happens to overlook the Brisbane Synagogue.
The flag was then seized and a local man, aged 45, was subsequently charged with public nuisance. He’ll now face court over the incident at the end of this month on November 30th.
The flag’s appearance angered Brisbane’s Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner, who shared his disgust at it. “This is sickening,” he said. “For someone to fly this symbol of hatred and genocide right above the Brisbane Synagogue on Margaret St is pure evil. It’s time for this vile flag to be banned in Queensland. “QLD needs to get serious about cracking down on these open displays of racial hatred.”
Last month, Victoria became the first Australian state to announce it was considering banning the use of Nazi imagery. Other states like Queensland are currently considering doing so too, with a parliamentary committee in Queensland looking into hate crimes and whether the Nazi symbol should be considered an offence.
“Under the current inadequate laws, this is likely to be classified as nothing more than a low-level “public nuisance”. Not good enough!” Mr Schrinner also wrote after the incident.
Dr Dvir Abramovich, chairman of the Anti-Defamation Commission, also commented on the flag’s appearance. “Anyone who loves our country will not feel comfortable knowing that there are individuals in our midst who are brazenly and proudly exhibiting a symbol that represents the pure evil that led to the death squads, gas chambers and the extermination of six million Jews,” he said.
