GOP Congressman Under Fire for Filming Selfie Political Video Inside Auschwitz Gas Chamber

Auschwitz Museum to Higgins: ‘It’s Not a Stage’

A freshman Republican Congressman from Louisiana is under fire for traveling to Poland to film what seems to be footage for a political ad, inside the Nazi gas chambers at Auschwitz. Rep. Clay Higgins first made national news last month when he called for the extrajudicial slaying of any and all persons even suspected of having been radicalized by ISIS. “Hunt them, identity them, and kill them. Kill them all. For the sake of all that is good and righteous. Kill them all,” Higgins wrote on Facebook.

Now, Higgins again is under attack, for this chilling and amazingly inappropriate video, which he filmed as a “selfie” at The Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum, which is in modern-day Poland.

“It’s hard to walk away from the gas chambers and ovens without a very sober feeling of commitment, unwavering commitment, to make damn sure that the United States of America is protected from the evils of the world,” Higgins says in the video.

Higgins attempts to appear contemplative, but his intention is clear: equating terrorism from groups like ISIS to Nazi atrocities, and using that fear as leverage to strengthen America’s military forces – and to strengthen his ties to his base.

“1.1 million civilians here in Auschwitz,” Higgins says in a close up on his face, while he walks around inside the actual gas chamber, describing how the Nazis slaughtered people. Later, he shows the ovens where bodies were burned, and then says: “this is why homeland security must be squared away. Why our military must be invincible.”

Higgins also shows a “suffocation cell,” explaining how the Nazis would let dozens at a time die without air, then, outside the camp, saying: “The world’s a smaller place now than it was in World War II. The United States is more accessible to terror like this, horror like this.”

The Times-Picayune of New Orleans posted the video to YouTube (we suggest caution):

As some have noted, not once does Higgins mention that the majority of people killed in Nazi concentration camps and extermination camps were Jews, along with LGBT people, Romani people, the disabled, Poles, and others.

And many, including the museum where Higgins filmed his grotesque video, are outraged. 

On Twitter, the Auschwitz‑Birkenau Memorial and State Museum posted a statement saying, “Everyone has the right to personal reflections. However, inside a former gas chamber, there should be mournful silence. It’s not a stage.”

It also posted a photo of the sign all visitors see before they enter. It requests “silence,” and a “respect” for the memory of the thousands of people killed by the Nazi SS.

Higgins clearly ignored them.

“Congressman Higgins, Auschwitz is not a television studio,” Steven Goldstein, executive director of the Anne Frank Center for Mutual Respect, said in a statement. “It is the site of genocide and tragedy for the Jewish people that you have disrespected. Not only must you apologize, but you must also get the sensitivity training appropriate for your continued service in the U.S. Congress.” 

MSNBC notes that “Higgins, in his capacity as a local sheriff, appeared in a video last year in which he described several wanted members of a street gang as ‘animals’ and ‘heathens,’ adding, ‘You will be hunted, you will be trapped, and if you raise a weapon to a man like me, we’ll return fire with superior fire.'”

After the video surfaced, Higgins resigned – which cleared the way for his election to Congress

Some responses via Twitter:

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