MN County Republicans Compare Mandating Masks to Nazis Forcing Jews to Wear Yellow Stars

The Republican Party of Washaba County, MN, shared an image comparing the state’s policy mandating masks to the Nazi Germany policy that forced Jews to wear yellow stars. 

The image, featuring a black and white photograph of a Nazi official and a Jewish person wearing the notorious star, was posted on the Washaba County Republicans’ official Facebook page with the caption: “Just put the star on and quit complaining, it’s really not that hard. Just put the mask on and stop complaining.” 

This post came just after Minnesota Rabbis spoke out in favor of mandatory masks, and follows a long line of Republican officials and state legislators in Colorado, Pennsylvania, Kansas, Idaho, and Alaska — as well as a Republican city councilman in St. Cloud, MN — making similar offensive comparison to attack public health measures.

The progressive Jewish organization, Jewish Community Action, pointed out the offensive Facebook post. The Chairwoman of the Minnesota GOP responded, initially claiming that the county Facebook page had been hacked. She later admitted that the post was shared by a Wabasha County Republicans Board Member, who subsequently resigned.