Couple wears swastika masks in Minnesota Walmart
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A man and woman in Minnesota wore red face masks emblazoned with swastikas to a Walmart, and a video posted to social media shows them being confronted by other shoppers.
Police were called Saturday to the Walmart in Marshall, in the southwest part of the state, on a report that two shoppers were wearing the mask with the symbol used by the Nazi Party.
“If you vote for (Democratic presidential candidate Joe) Biden, you’re going to be living in Nazi Germany, that's what it's going to be like,” the woman with the swastika mask said in the video as the man loaded bags of groceries into a shopping cart.
Raphaela Mueller, who shot the video, told the Associated Press that when she first saw the two people, she felt "nauseated and I wanted to cry, which I ended up doing.”
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“I was speechless and shocked. I have heard of (things like this) happening in other places but I never thought I would see something like that,” she said Sunday.
Marshall police gave the man and woman no-trespass notices but did not cite or arrest them, police Capt. Jeff Wenker told the AP on Sunday. Police did not identify them.
Saturday was the first day that Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz's executive order took effect requiring masks in businesses and indoor public spaces to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Walmart already required customers to wear masks at its namesake and Sam's Club stores.
In a statement, Walmart said the Bentonville, Arkansas-based retailer “will not tolerate any form of discrimination or harassment in any aspect of our business.”
“Store management offered the individuals disposable face masks as an alternative, which they refused. The individuals became belligerent and were asked to leave the store by store management,” Walmart said.
The trespass ban is for at least a year and applies to all Walmart stores, the company said.