A couple, filmed in a viral video with masks with Nazi swastikas stamped on them, will not be able to shop at a Minnesota Walmart for at least a year, police said Monday.
The ugly incident unfolded Saturday at the store’s location in Marshall, Minnesota, which is about 150 miles west of Minneapolis and about 100 miles northeast of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, authorities and officials from the company.
In the tweeted video, which had received 3.2 million views late Monday morning, shoppers could be seen confronting the couple who used the swastika while paying for their goods.
Local governments and retailers across the country have put codes and rules in place for people to wear masks in public to slow the spread of the coronavirus. But some Americans have refused to follow those orders, saying such mandates are unfair.
And for months, President Donald Trump accused mask users of being “politically correct” or said they were donning protective gear as an act of defiance against him (earlier this month he called the patriots “patriotic” ).
Buyers apparently protested the mask requirements as the equivalent of Nazi demands, rather than upholding Nazi ideology. “If you vote for Biden, you will be in Nazi Germany,” the Walmart buyer said in the video, referring to Trump’s Democratic presidential rival Joe Biden.
Officers responded to that Walmart at 11:46 am because the man and woman “were causing disturbances,” according to a statement from Police Sgt. Marshall. Jason Buysse.
The buyers, who were not identified, received intrusion notices that will prohibit them from returning to that location in southwest Minnesota for at least the next year, Buysse said.
Earlier this month, Walmart began requiring all shoppers to wear face covers inside its stores, as the United States continues to struggle with the coronavirus pandemic.
Walmart said in a statement the Saturday incident in Marshall, Minnesota, was “unacceptable” and begged buyers to wear masks.
“We strive to provide a safe and comfortable shopping environment for all of our customers and will not tolerate any form of discrimination or harassment in any aspect of our business,” according to the company statement.
“We are asking everyone to put on face covers when they enter our stores for their safety and the safety of others and it is unfortunate that some people have taken this pandemic as an opportunity to create a distressing situation for customers and associates in our store. “
Rima Abdelkader contributed
