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San Diego Man Wears KKK Hood After City Mandate To Wear Face Masks Outdoors

This particular community has a history of white supremacist activity.

A man in California is being criticized after he was spotted wearing a white Ku Klux Klan hood while shopping at a Vons store in Santee, San Diego. A picture of the man was posted on social media over the weekend to the complete outrage of many.

According to Newsweek, the incident occurred on May 1, a day after San Diego imposed a facial covering public health order requiring residents to cover their faces in public if they come within six feet of another individual as a means of controlling the spread of the coronavirus. 

"Don't know which angers me more—the person wearing this or the fact that no one in management @Vons Santee did anything about it.," Tammy Gillies, regional director of the Anti-Defamation League of San Diego, tweeted. "@ADL_SD⁩ would be happy to educate your team. San Diego is #NoPlaceForHate."

San Diego County Supervisor Dianne Jacob added: "The images I've seen are abhorrent. This blatant racism has no place in Santee or any part of San Diego County. It is not who we are. It is not what we stand for and can't be tolerated."

According to those at the supermarket, the man refused to take off his hood after being confronted.

Santee has a history of racist activity, and according to Twitter user @nicopitney, who states that the city previously earned the dubious distinction “Klantee.” 

Perhaps the most well-known incident happened in 1998 when five white men broke Black Marine’s neck at a party, leaving him paralyzed. They subsequently shouted “white power.”

In a statement about the incident, Santee Mayor John Minto said, "The citizens and Vons employees took steps to address the situation. Many thanks to all who stepped forward to curtail this sad reminder of intolerance. Santee, its leaders, and I will not tolerate such behavior. Santee and its citizens are great, and this particular individual's actions are not representative of us as a people and a wonderful city."

However, no further action was taken as the man was allowed to continue his shopping in the store. 

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