Resident threatens to place swastikas if council does not remove Pride flags; mayor says markings are being removed

During the public-comment period at the June 9 meeting, resident Jeremy Brown criticized the council’s decision to display Pride flags on municipal property and threatened retaliatory displays.

Brown, who declined to give his address, said he was "appalled by the lack of logical and effective leadership" and urged the council to remove the flags and to draft an ordinance limiting flags on Evansville government property to government-related flags only. He asserted employees who disagree with the council’s choices risk being ostracized and said he would plant swastika flags beside town flags and continue drawing swastikas on sidewalks if the council did not act.

"For the record, and I cannot stress this enough, unequivocally, I am not a Nazi and nor do I believe their ideology," Brown said, while also announcing his intention to place offensive symbols on town property if the flags remained.

Mayor Candace Pachado responded that the chalked swastikas that had been reported were new and "were drawn today, probably about two hours ago by a resident here in town," and indicated they were being removed. Council leadership thanked Brown for exercising his First Amendment rights but reiterated that the town has codes of conduct and procedures for employee complaints. Town attorney Scott Murray reminded the public that there are measures in place to address workplace retaliation and ostracism.

Earlier in the meeting resident Phil Gerky had called attention to swastikas on the back step and sidewalk, asking the council to "get rid of the swastikas on the back step." The mayor’s office said staff would take them down.

The council did not vote on flag policy at the meeting; Brown’s request to have an ordinance drafted was not acted on during this session.