Nazis protest outside 'The Diary of Anne Frank' theater production in Howell

HOWELL, Mich. (FOX 2) - Several people in Howell were waving Nazi flags outside of an American Legion Post that was hosting a play production of "The Diary of Anne Frank" Saturday night.

"Some Nazi extremists were out here in the parking lot and they were shouting, believe it or not - 'Anne Frank is a wh***,'" said Bobby Brite, the former post commander.

The Fowlerville Community Theater used the American Legion Devereaux  Post 141 for its production about Frank, whose historical diary of hiding from Nazis during World War II.  

During the performance, members of the post confronted the demonstrators.

"I went across the street and I spoke to them," Brite said. "And I asked them, if you are so committed to your cause, why is it that you are masked? And they said it was for their protection.

"So I proceeded to use a couple of profanities and told them they were cowards."

Brite says the group called the police as they held white supremacist signs and flags.

"(They were) calling for police, saying they were going to be assaulted - which wasn’t the case," Brite said.

As police arrived Brite went live on Facebook to stream what was going on.

"You’re no longer moving forward with free speech you are attempting to intimidate people," he said.

The demonstrators left the area. but some were also seen with Nazi flags in downtown Fowlerville.

Brite believes these demonstrators are connected to a Nazi demonstration held in July in downtown Howell.

"We're pretty sure that's the same group of people - and that’s based off comments we received from the police department," he said.

FOX 2 reached out to the Fowlerville Community Theatre and they provided a statement which reads in part:

"As a theatre, we want to make people feel and think. We hope that by presenting Anne’s story, we can help prevent the atrocities of the past from happening again."

The despicable display has been met with disgust by lawmakers as well.

"Don't come back here, don't come back to Howell, all of us are united in rejecting that," said Tom Barrett, member elect, MI 7th Congressional District.

Howell Mayor Bob Ellis released a statement that said:

"Our goal is to be recognized as an inclusive and welcoming community, and this group's reprehensible conduct only reinforces our resolve to make that a reality."