Nazi protesters gather outside the play “The Diary of Anne Frank” in Michigan
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Nazi protesters gather outside the play “The Diary of Anne Frank” in Michigan

A group of masked protesters were seen waving Nazi flags outside a production of “The Diary of Anne Frank” in Howell, Michigan, on Saturday.

Witnesses said the five people were heard shouting racist and anti-Semitic slurs in the parking lot of American Legion Post 141, where the play about the young victim of the Holocaust was being held.

Bobby Brite, a veteran who took video of the group, told the Detroit ABC affiliate WXYZ that people who attended the play were shocked and scared.

PHOTO: This still from a video shows a Nazi rally outside a performance by

PHOTO: This still from a video shows a Nazi rally outside a performance of “The Diary of Anne Frank” at an American Legion in Howells, Mich., Nov. 9, 2024. (Bobby Brite)

“We had 75 people downstairs who saw that play, and of those 75, 50 or 60 of them were afraid to leave this building. We had to escort them to their cars. No one in America should feel that way. ” said Brite, who said he served 26 years in the Army.

Livingston County Sheriff Michael J. Murphy said they were called to respond to a “disturbance.” After the protesters were asked to leave the property, they continued to protest across the street, at which point “a subject approached them, and an argument ensued.”

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“Nothing physical occurred and ultimately the parties involved were separated,” Murphy said.

According to Fowlerville Community Theatre, which put on the play, the audience and cast were informed of the incident during intermission.

“Although some were understandably shaken, they pulled themselves together and finished the performance with strength and professionalism,” the theater organization said in a statement.

PHOTO: Nazi demonstrators protested outside a production of

PHOTO: Nazi protesters protest outside a production of “The Diary of Anne Frank” at an American Legion in Howell, Mich. (WLAJ)

The play went ahead and was performed again the following day without incident.

“This production revolves around real people who lost their lives in the Holocaust, and we have tried to tell their story with as much realism as possible,” said the local theater group. “On Saturday night, things became more real than we expected; the presence of protesters outside gave us a small glimpse of the fear and uncertainty felt by those in hiding.”

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“As a theater we want to make people feel and think,” the group continued. “We hope that by presenting Anne’s story we can help prevent the atrocities of the past from happening again.”

In a statement on X, the Anti-Defamation League’s Michigan chapter condemned the incident.

“We are disgusted by the far-right extremists who hailed Hitler and waved Nazi flags outside an American Legion that hosted the play ‘The Diary of Anne Frank,’ and we stand with American Legion 141 and @HowellTownship who know that hate has no place in their community” , the ADL said.

Nazi protesters gather outside the play “The Diary of Anne Frank” in Michigan originally appeared on abcnews.go.com