Sen. Carlucci, Faith-Based Leaders, & Social Justice Advocates Denounced Hate Group After Their Flyers Were Possibly Posted In Spring Valley

Spring Valley, NY -- Senator David Carlucci (D-Rockland/Westchester), faith-based leaders, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), Rockland County Pride Center and Center For Safety & Change untied together on Friday to denounce a dangerous hate group.

Leaders explained they were holding a press conference outside the Rock Apostolic Church in Spring Valley after a post on Twitter dated September 18th, appeared to show Identity Evropa’s flyers in the Rockland County village.

Identity Evropa is designated by the ADL and Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) as a white supremacist, neo-Nazi hate group. 

“We joined together to say in one collective voice that hate like this has no place in our community and will not be tolerated. This group had members at the deadly alt-right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia last year, and they preach hate against Jews, blacks, Muslims, immigrants, and the LGTBQ+ community,” said Senator Carlucci. "We do not need them in Spring Valley, and we do not need them inciting violence anywhere in our state.”

The ADL worries if a group like this continues their movement then anti-Semitic incidents could continue to increase at an alarming rate. Last year, the ADL reported a 90% increase in anti-Semitic incidents and a 100% increase in incidents on college campuses and on school campuses K-12.

“What is concerning, is that these flyers aren’t just on walls, but they are online and that is where hate is going,” said ADL New York Regional Director Evan Bernstein. “We are one year since Charlottesville, and we didn’t see a rally like this the year before. These groups know facial recognition software led to some of their members losing their jobs in Charlottesville so now they are doing everything they can to recruit young people online to do hate in their community.”

Identity Evropa is known for targeting young people on college campuses and through social media, posting flyers and hiding their ideology behind messages of shared community or appealing to current political division. Bernstein said in the past 3 days, the ADL tracked at least 7 different posts from Identity Evropa, showing their flyer efforts in different New York communities.

“Our young people are being poisoned by the hatred of the world, and they don’t recognize it because the social media is so deep into our lives," said Rev. Raymond Caliman, President of the Rockland County Ministers. "It is my prayer, we as leaders of the community teach our congregation and our children that love conquers all, and we don’t need racism or hatred."

“We can’t solve the problem of hatred by hating back. Dr. King said that darkness can’t be abolished by more darkness; it can only be eradicated by light. If we hate these hateful people then they win,” said Rev. Richard Hasselbach with the Clarkstown Reformed Church in West Nyack.

Identity Evropa is based in Alexandria, Virginia, and Senator Carlucci believes their members targeted Spring Valley because its home to large Jewish and Haitian populations.

“Our diversity is one of our greatest assets. We cherish our Haitian immigrants, and this group hates immigrants, anyone who is different. When we see people trying to engage us in this hateful battle, we need to make sure we are coming together and educating the public about this group,” said Senator Carlucci.

Senator Carlucci’s office reported the tweet to the Spring Valley Police. They said officers would be on the lookout for the flyers to have them removed. However, police questioned if the group actually took the photos in Spring Valley or if they are just trying to generate fear and attention online.