A Florida man allegedly responsible for hanging swastikas and anti-Semitic propaganda banners on a bridge overlooking Interstate 4 has been arrested under a new law designed to prohibit such displays, reported WTSP on Wednesday.
"Jason Brown, a 48-year-old from Cape Canaveral, was arrested for his alleged actions on June 10. But he didn't work alone, FDLE agents said. Currently, there are three outstanding warrants for additional demonstrators who reportedly participated but live out of state," reported Claire Farrow. "Brown is a self-proclaimed member of the antisemitic, extremist group 'Order of the Black Sun,' FDLE agents said."
Brown is one of the first people to be charged under Florida H.B. 269, a new statute signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis earlier this year. Among other things, the law prohibits people from displaying banners or projecting images onto buildings or structures without the consent of the property owner.
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Florida has seen a number of similar neo-Nazi incidents — and ironically, said the report, some of the extremist demonstrators have also sported pro-DeSantis gear.
"The same day Brown and his fellow demonstrators hung racist banners over I-4, other neo-Nazi demonstrators waved swastika and DeSantis flags outside Disney World," noted the report. "At the time, State Rep. Anna Eskamani, D-Orlando, tweeted a video she said was sent to her. The short video clip shows several people gathered outside the theme park in Orlando with Nazi flags and other white supremacist imagery at their sides."
DeSantis, for his part, has condemned the Nazi displays, but has also complained that Democrats are "elevating" the Nazi incidents in order to "smear" him.
