Those responsible for spraying neo-Nazi graffiti in Galway city centre over recent weeks will not be allowed "gain any political foothold in this city" and if they "attempt to organise openly in the light of day, they will be met with overwhelming disgust and revulsion".
This is the joint message from Solidarity Galway, People Before Profit Galway, the Galway Anti-Racism Network, and Galway Pro-Choice, and follows the activities of a very small, and unrepresentative group of individuals who have defaced walls, property, and posters with Neo-Nazi symbols an codes and calls for 'White Power' and opposition to abortion.
The actions of this tiny band have been met with revulsion in Galway, with many people using social media to highlight the issue and to condemn it. The four groups said that while "we shouldn’t give a tiny, isolated group more attention than it deserves, we are satisfied to note that its hideous ideas are being exposed by media coverage".
According to the groups, the graffiti is carried out by "a handful of individuals sneaking around after dark scribbling codes and symbols of hate on our walls". The statement continued: "They are trying to give an inflated idea of their real influence."
The groups also said that labelling the graffitists as neo-Nazis is a factual description. "Their support for Hitler is documented in their own hands on the walls of our city, alongside white power symbols and references to US killer David Lane," read the statement. "These people are on the same page ideologically as the terrorist murderers Thomas Mair, Dylan Rooff, and Anders Breivik. We know that their efforts are meant as a threat to the lives, security and dignity of women, LGBT+ people, and minority communities."
The groups concluded their statement with: "Any bigot who supports, enables or lends an ear to these neo-Nazis cannot now plead ignorance or make excuses. Anyone who stands with them is thereby exposed with them. We will campaign publicly against any attempt on their part to establish any real base of support in Galway city."
