PASADENA, California — Police in this Los Angeles suburb on Sunday were investigating fliers dropped in a neighborhood that were filled with antisemitic theories regarding COVID-19.
The fliers were stuffed in plastic bags and left on driveways over a four-block area, according to Pasadena police Lt. Anthony Burgess.
Burgess told the Los Angeles Times that the fliers cited a “COVID agenda” and named several federal health and corporate officials while identifying them as Jewish.
The fliers stated that “every single aspect of the COVID agenda is Jewish.”
The Pasadena City Council released a statement saying it would stand firm against hate speech of any kind.
“The distribution of antisemitic fliers in Pasadena and other Southern California communities over the weekend is abhorrent and totally antithetical to the values of our city and its residents,” the city said in its statement.
“Our thoughts are with our residents and those hurt by these disgusting acts. We know Pasadena residents of all faiths will stand together and speak out against hatred in all its forms.”
Similar fliers have been distributed in communities across the country, according to media reports, including Greensboro, N.C. and Missouri City, Tex.
Beverly Hills officials reported antisemitic fliers being dropped by homes last month as Hanukkah began, according to the L.A. Times.
The pandemic “has served as a catalyst for radicalization,” said Ciaran O’Connor, an analyst at the London-based Institute for Strategic Dialogue, who has studied far-right posts on social media. “It allows conspiracy theorists or extremists to create simple narratives, framing it as us versus them, good versus evil.”
*
Preceding provided by Times of San Diego with which San Diego Jewish World trades stories under auspices of the San Diego Online News Association.