A sign outside a nursery school in Latvia advertised that the establishment is 'Jew-free, according to media reports.
The sign with the German term 'judenfrei', which was used by the Nazi occupiers during World War II, was seen posted on the outside gate of the Pucite pre-school in Riga which is reportedly owned by the far-right lawmaker Imants Paradnieks. The Coordination Forum for Countering Antisemitism further reported that Paradnieks was asked last Tuesday via Twitter if the sign was real or “a provocation.” According to the account, while he did not reply directly to the question, he wrote: “The Kremlin is full of jackals.”
JTA reported that the school says on its website that its educational program is rooted in “the Latvian national culture, Latvian wisdom and view of the world — where all children learn through play and hands-on experiences.”
In March, some 1,500 Latvians held a commemoration for World War II veterans who fought alongside the Nazis. Latvia was occupied by Germany in 1941, and later the Latvian Legion was formed numbering some 90,000 to fight in support of the Nazi troops. In 2012, Russia’s RT television showed video of two men visiting the same Pucite preschool wearing Latvia’s SS Legion uniforms and passing their pistols around to the 3-year-olds.
Latvia’s Jewish population numbered about 95,000 before the Holocaust, 90 percent of whom were killed by the Nazis and their Latvian helpers. In 1991, the country regained independence with the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
