By JEFF AMY
ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia Republican U.S. Senate candidate Herschel Walker has called off a fundraiser in Texas because an organizer was displaying a swastika made of syringes in her social media profile to protest mandatory COVID-19 vaccination.
The Walker campaign said Wednesday that it had canceled the event, which had been scheduled for Saturday in suburban Dallas at the home of Bettina Sofia Viviano-Langlais.
“Herschel is a strong friend of Israel and the Jewish community and opposes hatred and bigotry of all forms,” campaign spokesperson Mallory Blount said. “Despite the fact that the apparent intent behind the graphic was to condemn government vaccine mandates, the symbol used is very offensive and does not reflect the values of Herschel Walker or his campaign.”
The campaign had earlier denied that the symbol was a swastika.
“Herschel Walker defended a swastika, and canceling a fundraiser does not change the fact that he failed to condemn a hateful, anti-Semitic symbol.” Georgia Democratic Party spokesperson Dan Gottlieb said in a statement.