A Massachusetts restaurant has apologized for serving WWII reenactors who were dressed like Nazi SS soldiers over the weekend.
Kith and Kin, an eatery in Hudson, said in a Tuesday Facebook post that it became the target of harassment and threats after two men dressed in Nazi-garb chowed down at the establishment on Saturday.
Those men were part of a troupe of historical performers working with the American Heritage Museum, which organized a war reenactment earlier in the day. Two were dressed as German soldiers, four as US soldiers, and one as a military nurse, according to the restaurant.
“In hindsight they should have been asked to change before being seated. Even though we knew they were living historians, at a time when acts of anti–Semitic violence continue to rise, we should have realized other diners might not be aware of the local WWII reenactment,” Kith and Kin wrote in a separate post to Facebook on Sunday.
“We would never intentionally do anything to offend or hurt anyone in the community,” Kith and Kin added, “If we truly thought these individuals held anti-Semitic beliefs, we would never have allowed them to step foot in the restaurant.”
Tons of locals chimed in on the post and sentiments were divided.
“As someone who happened to be there dining I did notice and thought it was odd that the reenactors mistakenly felt it unnecessary to change out of the costumes,” one woman wrote. “I can’t imagine they truly thought it was acceptable to wear those costumes to dine in public.”
“You did nothing wrong and neither did [the reenactors],” another comment read. “It was a reenactment, people are ridiculous these days and get offended by everything and they need to stop.”
Another response read, “It doesn’t matter that there was a reenactment event or whether diners knew about the event. No one should be subjected to seeing people dressed as Nazis without their consent.”
Over 350 reenactors participated over two days in the American Heritage Museum’s presentation of the Battle for the Airfield – which was billed as one of the premier events of its type in the nation.
Kith and Kin announced Tuesday they were closed for the day over fear of the safety of their staff after the establishment received a number of threats.