KEY POINTS

  • The post included a photo of a Nazi soldier with a prisoner wearing a Star of David
  • State GOP Chairwoman claimed the post had been the work of a hacker, then she apologized
  • The party official hasn't been identified by name

A Republican Party official in Minnesota has resigned for comparing the state's face mask order to the Nazi directive that require all Jews to wear a Star of David during the Holocaust.

The unidentified board member of the Wabasha County Republican Party made the comparison in a Facebook post, according to Jennifer Carnahan, the state party chairwoman. Earlier, she had claimed that the county party's Facebook page had been hacked.

Carnahan asked the official, who she described as "lower-ranking," to resign and had the post deleted.

The post included a black-and-white photo of a Nazi soldier with a prisoner wearing a Star of David and text that drew a comparison between Hitler's order to the state's face mask mandate, CBS News reported. Minnesota is one of several states that is requiring residents to wear a face mask to stymie the spead of the coronavirus.

“Just put on the star and quit complaining, it's really not that hard." the post read. "Just put on the mask and stop complaining.”

The party and the county board also apologized and said they were “saddened by the vitriolic post.”

“The offensive picture was unfortunately posted by a board member who has resigned effective immediately at the party's request,” Carnahan told CNN.

The Jewish Community Action tweeted a screenshot of the post Monday.

.“Given that Minnesota rabbis recently spoke out in favor of a mask mandate, comparing that mandate to the Holocaust feels especially disgusting. We ask the @MNGOP to tell Wabasha Republicans to stop using imagery like this. It betrays a total lack of both empathy and education,” the group tweeted.

In response, Carnahan tweeted that the party believed the photo was posted by a hacker.

“They believe this was a hack and are removing their FB page immediately. Our party does not support/condone divisive and harmful posts or language of this nature,” she tweeted.

Just days earlier, a couple wore face masks with with swastikas at a Walmart in Marshall, Minnesota. A video of their shopping trip went viral.

The man, 59, and the woman, 64, have been temporarily banned from all Walmart stores in the United States.

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