Indy man explains why he hung a Nazi flag

For Keith Smith, flying the Nazi flag makes a point about how he's being slowly stripped of his freedom.

The 58-year-old Indianapolis man has flown the flag three times in front of his house before, joining the Confederate flag and the Gadsden flag that reads "Don't tread on me."

"Everything is being stripped from us, everything is being turned into an issue," Smith said. "I mostly flew it because I’m tired of seeing stuff across the U.S. Some want to cry about their hurt feelings, but this is a part of history being taken down."

The flag has been causing quite a stir on social media, and one of the original posts has been shared more than 600 times. But Smith doesn't care.

"People (are) going to say what they want and think what they want," he said. "There’s a lot of people who don’t like it, a lot of people who don’t care and a lot who agree with me."

It's not illegal to fly the flag in the U.S. The right to do so is protected under the First Amendment.

The flag is no longer up, but Smith wanted to make it clear that he took it down of his own free will. It's worth $500, he said, and was taken as a souvenir from World War II.

"I collect everything," Smith said. "When I get a reproduction, I might leave it up, but this is an original trophy flag from the war."

The Nazis, who came to power in Germany in January 1933, believed Germans were racially superior and that the Jews were an alien threat to German society, according to the U.S. Holocaust Museum's website. The Nazis killed six million Jews and others they believe were inferior from 1933 to 1945, when World War II ended.

Smith said the Nazi flag is about history, not race. He bought the flag from an antique dealer, and he's been collecting neo-Nazi memorabilia since he was 14. He has badges, military pins and other commodities.

"It's a part of history," he said. "Someone sacrificed their life fighting and brought the flag back as a trophy."

But many don't see the flag that way. Jim Otey, a 51-year-old who lives in Smith's neighborhood, said the flag represents an overall symbol of hate for him. He drives past Smith's house daily and always saw the Confederate and Gadsden flag, and just shook his head. But the Nazi flag went too far.

"It's the ultimate symbol of all the evil and bad things that are in this country," Otey said. "It's frightening to see that in your neighborhood."

He made the original post on Facebook about the flag, and said he was astounded to see how far it spread.

"It makes me feel good that everyone is getting on board here," Otey said. "That's not going to fly here."

Follow IndyStar reporter Kara Berg on Twitter: @karaberg95

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