NWI Times: Trump supporters caravan outside Hammond mayor’s house in protest over flag dispute
Bloomington Herald-Times: Racist post on Brown County GOP Facebook elicits bipartisan backlash
INDIANAPOLIS – The Indiana Democratic Party, the organization that advocates for the future of Indiana and its families, today called on elected officials and party leadership within the Indiana Republican Party to condemn a dangerous precedent that’s bubbling up across the state, one that’s risking the safety of communities like Brown and Lake Counties.
Here’s what happened: The Brown County Republican Party received bipartisan backlash last week for posting content rooted in racism and white supremacy. In fact, it appeared the county chairman was directly tied to publishing the article itself. And over the weekend, Republican voters from Southern Indiana were so upset Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott asked a constituent to abide by the city’s ordinance on obscenity that a caravan drove across the state in an attempt to intimidate the Mayor and protest a so-called “infringement” of their rights. The Indiana Republican Party has yet to issue a statement on either matter.
This silence by the INGOP — coupled with their extreme partisan agenda at all levels of government — allows racism and threatening behavior to fester unchecked. What’s worse, the Indiana Republican Party’s partisanship has become too irrational, and it’s hurting the state and its families in the process. Our nation saw what happened on January 6th of this year. We cannot allow racism and intimidation to become commonplace in our politics or public service.
Take a look at some key points from these stories below:
Brown County Republican Party Chairman’s Family Caught Posting White Supremacist Post on Party’s Facebook Page
Bloomington Herald-Times: Racist post on Brown County GOP Facebook elicits bipartisan backlash
“A racist post on the official Facebook page of the Brown County (Ind.) Republican Party has elicited some bipartisan backlash.
The post, which has been taken down, included an alleged newspaper editorial espousing white supremacist tropes and was littered with racist tropes including that Black people come from ‘jungles,’ have ‘virtually no intellectual achievements’ and continue to show that they’re culturally incompatible despite best efforts to integrate them into white people’s ‘majestic civilization.’” […]
“Brown County GOP Chair Mark Bowman declined to comment on the post, but some members of the community, including a Republican, are pushing back.
‘This one was just beyond the pale for me,’ said Brown County resident Alex Miller, a Republican who has worked for the party at the state level.
Richard Bond, chairman of the Brown County Democratic Party, called the post ‘disgusting’ and an ‘embarrassment to my county.’
And Nancy Crocker, a nonpartisan member of the Nashville (Ind.) Town Council, described the post as ‘terrible.’
‘I would never condone anything like that in my community,’ she told The Herald-Times.” […]
“He also said the person in charge of the Facebook page would not comment, but he didn’t want to say who that was. However, the Facebook page lists as contact information the email address [email protected]. Tramcore Realty is the real estate company that Bowman runs with his wife, Robyn. According to the business website, Robyn Bowman has a minor in communications and ‘enjoys helping people.’
On Thursday morning, the Brown County GOP’s Facebook page was no longer available.”
Indiana Republican Voters Hold Rally to Protest Hammond’s City Ordinances on Obscene Materials in Public
NWI Times: Trump supporters caravan outside Hammond mayor’s house in protest over flag dispute
“A caravan of Trump supporters traveled hours from Evansville to Hammond to drive by Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr.’s house Saturday afternoon in response to a spat over a flag being flown outside a resident’s home.
The group, Young Conservatives of Southern Indiana, had made the trip from southern Indiana to the mayor’s home in response to McDermott’s condemnation of an anti-Joe Biden flag containing an expletive.
The flag, which was placed on a residence that sits across from a park, violated a Hammond ordinance banning public display of ‘obscene’ material because it contains two uses of the F-word, McDermott argued.”
“Before the caravan left the Walmart parking lot, members with bullhorns addressed the group, expressing that their First Amendment rights were under attack. Members advised the group that they should remain peaceful and warned against the potential of ‘leftist mobs’ in the city.
The group that was waiting at McDermott’s home included his friends, family and Region residents who wanted to gather to greet to the Trump caravan. Mayor McDermott who waved to the crowd confirmed his position–”this isn’t about politics, it’s about community standards and what should and shouldn’t be in full view of a park where kids play every day.”
John Cantrell, who lives in the neighborhood, said he doesn’t understand what the group’s purpose for driving by was.“I think it’s crazy to drive five hours here and five hours back for this,” Cantrell said. ‘There are just so many better things to do with your time then spend 10 hours on that.’”
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