Michigan official refuses to apologise for calling to 'kill all Muslims'
A village president has come under fire for comparing Islam to a 'flesh-eating bacteria' in social media posts
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A Michigan government official who posted a call on Facebook to kill all Muslims has said he “owe[s] nobody an apology”.
Jeff Sieting, the president of a small village in northern Michigan, was recently discovered to have posted anti-Muslim messages on his Facebook page.
One post, which appears to be copy and pasted from a North Carolina-based blog called "NC Renegade," is titled "Kill them all, every last one”. The post calls Muslims "dangerously destructive to society" and compares Islam to a "flesh-eating bacteria" and a “death cult."
Mr Sieting’s previous posts have called being transgender a mental illness and suggested “thin[ning] the herd” of the Black Lives Matter Movement, according to Michigan Live.
The President declined to apologise for his posts at a recent village meeting,
“I owe nobody an apology for exercising my First Amendment rights,” he said, adding later: “I don’t expect everyone to see things the way I do.”
Mr Sieting also argued that Muslims are evil, and that America has been fighting them for hundreds of years, according to the Traverse City Record Eagle.
The President’s posts were brought to light by local real estate broker Cindy Anderson, the Record Eagle reports. Ms Anderson has since sought Mr Sieting’s apology at two town meetings. Both times, he has declined.
Last month, residents staged a demonstration in downtown Kalkaska to protest the “disturbing, hateful and Islamophobic rants” of the village President – and to demand his resignation.
Ms Anderson says the group of protesters is looking for someone to run against Mr Seiting in 2018. He has been village president since 2010.
Mr Sieting maintains the effort to remove him is a result of non-residents' outrage at the pro-Donald Trump sign displayed in his hotel.
The FBI reports that anti-Muslim hate crimes increased by 67 per cent in 2015 – the year Mr Trump declared his candidacy, and the last year for which statistics are available. The number of anti-Muslim hate crimes that year were the highest they had been since 2001.
In Kalkaska, however, several residents are standing by their village president.
“If you don’t want to read it, get off of [his Facebook page],” resident Joyce Gold said at the town meeting. “From what I do know, you are a very honest, faithful, hardworking man and I thank you for that.”
She added: “I hope you continue and stand your ground for your beliefs.”
The Independent has reached out to Mr Sieting for comment.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments