Screenshot : Michael Johnson ( Imgur )

California officials said parole officers were using a banner symbolizing hate, racism and white supremacy for “training purposes,” after a keen-eyed citizen noticed a large Nazi flag hanging in an office at the California Department of Corrections.


Seems legit.

You gotta train employees because most people don’t quite know what a swastika looks like until they see it in stitched on a banner and hung on a wall at the office. That’s actually how I got this job. The first question they asked me during my interview was: “Would you like to hang a Nazi flag in your office?”


When I asked them what the fuck were they talking about, they simply replied: “You’re hired!”

According to CBS13, Michael Johnson was walking past the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation’s Sacramento office that deals with high-risk sex offenders and gang members when he looked through the window and saw the offensive logo. Although many people would have assumed it was some kind of welcome sign for Trump administration officials, Johnson said he first thought it was a Halloween decoration and posted a short video online.

Wait… Halloween? What kind of neighborhood does Johnson live in where people decorate their homes with pumpkins, skeletons and Third Reich paraphernalia? Does he have a summer home in Iowa next door to Congressman Steve King?

“Right there in front of me was a big giant red flag with a swastika on it and some large SS bolts,” said Johnson.


When confronted about the flag, California parole officers claimed the flag was a teaching tool they were using in a presentation about hate inside correctional facilities. I guess photocopies and photos don’t quite convey the same message. Also, why are CDCR officials giving Nazi TED Talks? I would suggest that anyone who doesn’t know what a swastika means without an interactive lecture shouldn’t be working inside prisons.




And if you’re wondering where they got a Nazi flag, no, they didn’t use taxpayer dollars to get it on Amazon Prime. They said they confiscated the banner and other items from Sacramento-area prisoners and parolees. Apparently, instead of burning Nazi regalia, the officers kept it just in case they needed it later. You never know when a six-foot swastika will come in handy.

“CDCR has a zero-tolerance policy for the display of objects that are derogatory in nature and we are taking this issue very seriously,” the department said in a statement. “The flag has been removed and we will be looking into the circumstances for why the flag was in the office in the first place.”


I still don’t understand why anyone would be involved with this particular arm of white supremacy. The history of torture, murder and racial terrorism has no place in a civilized society and it is troubling to think that the people of California should have to worry about this.

Nazis?

Nah, man. I was talking about corrections officers.