On Saturday, November 9, a white supremacist demonstration took place in front of American Legion Post 141, where the Fowlerville Community Theater was staging its production of The Diary of Anne Frank. Video footage released by the American Legion shows a group of demonstrators holding Nazi and American flags bearing white supremacist symbols gathered outside the venue.

a representative From the American Legion said this The organization had intended the game to be educational in response to recent reports of increased antisemitism. The American Legion also broadcast a Facebook livestream on Saturday, capturing footage of demonstrators being confronted by deputies from the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO).

In the video, a protester can be heard telling MPs, “We protect our right to freedom of expression.” Realizing that the images were being recorded, the demonstrators dispersed.

Later that day in Fowlerville, a second group of four demonstrators was seen displaying Nazi flags at the intersection of Grand River Boulevard and Grand Street. It is not known whether the two groups are connected because the demonstrators were masked.

In a press release issued Monday, the LCSO confirmed the presence of five masked individuals demonstrating outside the American Legion. Initially, the group entered the Legion’s parking lot but were asked to vacate the property.

“Demonstrators then crossed the street and waved flags decorated with Nazi insignia,” LCSO wrote. “They were then approached by a subject and an argument ensued. Nothing physical occurred and ultimately the parties involved separated.” LCSO deputies continued to patrol the area throughout the weekend and no other incidents were reported.

Fowlerville Community Theater also released a statement Monday describing the events that occurred during their performance. According to the statement, the Production Team noticed the protest during the first act and notified the audience and actors during the intermission before continuing the show.

“As a theater, we are storytellers,” the statement said. “We tell stories, some real, some fantastic, that take audiences to different times and places. This production focuses on real people who lost their lives in the Holocaust, and we tried to tell their stories as realistically as possible.

“On Saturday… everything became more real than we expected; we were hiding outside with the Nazis. As a theater we want people to feel and think. We hope that by presenting Anne’s story, we can help prevent the atrocities of the Nazis from happening again.”

This protest is the latest in a series of white supremacist demonstrations in Livingston County this year. In July, a group gathered in front of the Livingston County Historic Courthouse and later the Howell Carnegie Regional Library, chanting slogans such as “Heil Hitler.” Later that day, a second demonstration was held at the overpass at I-96 and Latson Road, with demonstrators chanting, “We love Hitler. We love Trump.”