One of Winter Guard International's percussion ensembles, Inov8, Is using a culturally insensitive costume to present their 2019 production "Dreamers".

The group is predominately Caucasian and all have bleached blonde hair which has caused some spectators to liken their appearance to Nazis/Aryan Nation. source1 source2 source3

The group share's other parallels with Neo-Nazi Behavior such as:

-An affinity for the number 8

-The similarity between their logo and the symbol for aryan nations

-Calling a part of their ensemble the hateful 8

-The theme of their production, as described by their directior, which in combination with their costume, could be likened to an alternate timeline to World War II where the nazi's were victorious.

Now why does this matter?:

Hate groups work in secret and speak in code. Anytime people affiliated with hate groups see their symbols, they see it as a sign of growing in power/numbers, which could eventually inspire one of them to commit an act of terrorism/violence. With the influence this group has, being broadcast to potentially 10's of thousands of people, this imagery has no place in the marching percussion activity.

I have spoken with the director of the ensemble and, although he denies any claims of being a hate group, he refuses to alter any part of the ensembles image to remove these parallels that can be drawn to Neo-Nazi imagery. Ignoring this issue minimizes the negative impact the Nazi ideology has had on the world, and can also empower the very real threat of white nationalism posed in america today! Both of which I find to be unacceptable to anyone who claims to be an ally to people of all cultures.

How can you assist us?:

Sign/share this petition, leave a reason why, contact WGI to let them know where you stand on this issue, and contact Inov8 to asking them to change their costume.

Fulfilling this petition will help us stop the use and spread of hateful symbolism as well as make the WGI arena a more safe environment for all cultures.

We thank you for reading our petition and appreciate your support!