A man identifying himself as “Scottie” and wearing sunglasses, a hat and a “White Power” shirt emblazoned with a swastika verbally attacked the Walnut Creek City Council on Tuesday night for shutting down phone-in and Zoom public commentary last year.
He pointed at City Councilmember Kevin Wilk, who is Jewish, at one point while speaking. He also threatened another Holocaust and “Jew expulsion.” He ended his speech by performing the Nazi salute and saying “Heil Hitler.”
“I came here to discuss the attack on free speech and our First Amendment rights being stripped away by Jewish supremacists,” “Scottie” said. “You shut down Zoom comments at the behest of the (Anti-Defamation League) because some Jews’ feelings got hurt. I’d like to remind you there is no hate speech exception to the First Amendment and cutting off comments for speech you disagree with, that’s in direct violation of the oath of office that you all swore to uphold. So I’m here today.”
Walnut Creek was the first of many Bay Area cities last year to stop using phone-in and Zoom public comments because of a spate of antisemitic callers using the time to push their propaganda.
In all cases, cities found the law requires cities to only allow in-person public comment. Zoom and phone calls aren’t covered under current law.
“Scottie” continued, saying “Think we’re scared? To show up. Show our face and call you out in person? Right there. You just shut me down. I would file a (Section) 1983 civil rights lawsuit so fast that you might as well break out the city’s checkbook and prepare to settle. Because you and I both know that we will win. You people disgust me and if you think following orders from those (slur) at the ADL will save you from being held accountable, you’re in for a rude awakening.”
He also said, “It’s only a matter of time before yet another inevitable Jew expulsion, Whites are awoken. And if these (slur) don’t realize that their time is very limited in our lands. And we might just have a Holocaust for real this time.”
He ended by saying “(Expletive) all you Jews … Heil Hitler. White (expletive) power.”
Apologies to humanity
The council seemed stunned following the speech. Wilk spoke up, saying, “We live in a free country and there is free speech and that means we have to listen to these full and heinous comments, like (those) we just listened to. And I would like to apologize on behalf of the City Council and anybody that had to hear that horrible, horrible speech. This is America. Unfortunately, we do have laws that protect people from saying anything.”
A clearly flustered Wilk finished by saying, “Again, I apologize on behalf of… -half of… humanity.”
“And we apologize to you, Kevin,” Mayor Pro Tem Cindy Darling interjected, trying to deescalate the moment, “because this is so clearly directed at you, and so vile, and not who we are as a city.”
An awkward silence followed as Mayor Lorella Haskew attempted to get on with the agenda. “Uh-h-h… OK… Doggone. There we are.”
Wilk said Wednesday morning he knows who the man really is, and his name isn’t Scottie.
“Freedom of speech means that even hate speech is allowed. But we don’t have to be silent to that hate,” Wilk said. “We need to stand up and speak out against it. This person is not from Walnut Creek, we know he’s from Modesto. This kind of hate is an attack on all of us. This time it’s antisemitism, but next time it may be directed at another marginalized community. Everyone should feel offended.”
“I will always stand up against hate speech against any community, wherever that exists,” Wilk said. “That’s my commitment as an elected leader, and as a member of our civil society.”