A white supremacist hate group attempted to hijack a special Evanston City Council meeting last week but was cut off by city staff.
The incident began during in-person public comment at the Feb. 22 meeting where council was set to discuss the 15-year lease of a downtown office for city operations. A man who identified himself as Sunny came up to the podium clad in sunglasses and a hat bearing the logo of the Goyim Defense League and began spouting anti-Semitic rhetoric. The group has been deemed an anti-Semitic, white supremacist hate group by the Anti-Defamation League.
The city sent out a news release Monday afternoon saying they were deeply troubled and shaken by the incident which has been traumatic for the city’s Jewish community.
“Rhetoric like this is incompatible not only with our community’s values (and basic human decency) but also with our commitment to holding inclusive Council meetings where all residents feel comfortable and safe expressing their views,” City officials said in a news release Monday afternoon. “The inextricably linked ideologies of antisemitism and white nationalism have fueled unimaginable violence and suffering, and history tells us that when rhetoric like this becomes commonplace, action is often not far behind.”
ADL’s Midwest Regional Director David Goldenberg said the group is responsible for about half of the anti-Semitic flyers the group has tracked in the past year. These flyers, which include links to GDL websites, have been found all across Chicagoland including in Park Ridge, Niles, Wilmette, Glencoe, Highland Park, Glenview and Long Grove.
The group is also known for banner drops and live streams of their activities in order to “monetize their hate” according to Goldenberg.
“it’s shocking. It’s disturbing. It’s despicable to be exposed to it generally but to hear those words spewed and stated in front of you is a wake up call,” Goldenberg said.
The speaker’s microphone was abruptly cut and subsequent video of the meeting posted to the city’s YouTube page omitted his speech and blurred an image he held up.
Mayor Daniel Biss allowed him to continue asking the speaker to refrain from using racial, ethnic or religious attacks. When the speaker continued, his microphone was cut again and he walked out screaming expletives.
Other disruptive public comments came virtually with commenters, some using false dogwhistle screennames, alleging the city is violating speakers First Amendment rights. The video meeting has since been removed but city officials say it will be reposted.
After a handful of virtual speakers echoed these sentiments, Councilmember Devon Reid asked if council has the authority to end public comment after 45 minutes. City Interim Counsel Alex Ruggie confirmed it is within the council’s right according to city council rules.
Public comments were then closed for the meeting. None of the speakers are believed to be Evanston residents, according to the city’s news release.
The incident is a departure from the group’s usual Illinois activity which isn’t often done in person, Goldenberg said.
“I firmly believe in folks right to freedom of speech but it’s undeniable that the comments today were disgusting,” Reid said. “It’s undeniable that there was a coordinated effort to make those disgusting comments.”
He went on to say it is scary as a public official to know your public information including address and phone number are out there.
“Quite frankly, we are in frightening times,” he continued. “I just, I don’t know. I’m disappointed. I don’t know what I am. Disgusted is what I am.”
One virtual speaker argued for the proposed ceasefire resolution that was pulled from consideration after the city’s legal department deemed it outside its purview.
Evanston activist Lesley Williams, who has helped to spearhead ceasefire resolution conversations, said the comments made during the meeting have nothing to do with their work.
“This is not the first time that city council meetings and other public meetings in Evanston have been ‘hate bombed,’” she said. “Given that 30,000 Palestinians have now been killed by Israeli bombs, it would be tragic to allow the rantings of a small number of racists to derail our call to save lives.”
Goldenberg said the ceasefire resolutions in Evanston and Chicago have attracted hate from both the far left and far right.
“They take advantage of these moments where there’s already fear, instability and concern and they try to add to it,” he said. “Sometimes there’s rhyme or reason to the timing but they look for opportunities whenever they present themselves to spew their hateful messages.”
The ADL has a tool kit on its website for municipalities to deal with these issues as they arise. The most important step, according to Goldenberg, is to have clear guidelines and zero tolerance policies around it to allow city officials to immediately respond to hate. The city said in its statement serious constraints imposed by the Open Meetings Act and the First Amendment limit what can be done to combat this.
“We will explore legal options to further protect the community from this type of abuse,” read the city’s news release. “We ask every single member of this community to join us in standing unequivocally against hate, bigotry and bullying so we can build a truly inclusive Evanston that values and welcomes all.”