Incidents of anti-Semitic and anti-LGBTQ hate on rise in Hartland
FOX 2 (WJBK) - Julie Ohashi is the president of Livingston Integrity - a group committed to democracy, honesty and transparency in a community she says, is experiencing an uptick in hate.
"This kind of thing scares people - which is obviously their objective," said Ohashi. "Growing up here I've seen plenty of flyers in our community of hate, like from white supremacy groups."
But lately - she says it's gotten worse in her small town of Hartland. A swastika was spray-painted on a tree near her home - there has been anti-LGBTQ propaganda, and that's not all.
"Last month my neighborhood saw multiple hate crimes including numerous stolen pride flags that turned up later burned on the beach," she said. "And now we're seeing this anti-Semitic fearmongering propaganda."
That anti-Semitic propaganda in the form of disturbing flyers - was left in people's driveways.
They printed a bunch of color flyers - anti-Semitic colored flyers, they stuffed them inside baggies, and included deer food we're assuming so they wouldn't blow away," she said. "And then they tossed them into the entire subdivision's driveways in this Hartland subdivision."
They were flyers with photos of pretty awful acts.
"It's extremely disturbing - if a child found these - I would be extremely upset as a parent," Ohashi said. "They're trying to associate pedophilia with Jewish practices."
Ohashi says she has contacted the police as well as the anti-defamation league - and is asking people to be on the lookout.
"People need to take note of the vehicles that are doing this - photos and videos if they safely can do so," she said. "At least the cops can follow up and have conversations with these people."
People who she says - need to be stopped.
"More people are not these hateful creatures that are coming out of the shadows," she said. "More people care, love, and are concerned. And they're watching out for one another so it will be just a matter of time before they're caught."
