A Spanish carnival has come under fire after its parade of dancing "Nazis" sparked outrage.
The controversial incident took place in the central Spanish region of Castilla-La Mancha on Monday. The carnival has now been slammed by the Israeli government and the Auschwitz museum for "trivializing" the Holocaust, per the Guardian, which claimed the lives of millions of Jews.
These cousins who thought the other was killed by the Nazis were reunited 75 years later:The Holocaust-themed display was created by the El Chaparral Cultural Association, and it was allegedly intended to honor the "6 million Jewish men, women and children who perished in the Holocaust and all those who suffered persecution and extermination because of their race, sexual orientation, religion, ethnic origin or political ideas."
However, while it may well have been well-intentioned, it sparked outrage from the Israeli embassy in Madrid and the Auschwitz memorial museum.
On Tuesday, the embassy said in a tweet: "We condemn the Campo de Criptana carnival's vile and repugnant trivialization of the Holocaust, which mocks the 6 million Jews murdered by the Nazis."
Whereas the museum tweeted: "Hard to describe: memory upside-down, far beyond vulgar kitsch, without any relevance, without reflection & respect."
In a statement cited by the Guardian, the town council of Campo de Criptana said that the act had been approved on the condition that it would honor those who lost their lives in the Holocaust.
"We share the criticisms that have been expressed," it added. "If the aim was to commemorate the victims, it's obvious the attempt fell short."
As per the local Cadena Ser radio station, the town's mayor said: "I agree that it doesn't feel like a very carnival-type theme. I don't think it will happen again."
The carnival took place just two days after carnival organizers in the Belgian town of Aalst were slammed for similar failings when, per the BBC, people were allowed to dress in antisemitic costumes and others dressed as Jews with large noses.
This resulted in a call from Israel's foreign minister, Israel Katz, to cancel the event this year, which was ignored. Katz tweeted: "Belgium as a western democracy should be ashamed to allow such a vitriolic antisemitic display."
In response to the content of the carnival, las year, it was removed from UNESCO's list of "intangible cultural heritage", the Guardian reports, because of the "recurring repetition of racist and antisemitic representations".
