Antisemitic flyers were distributed in some neighborhoods in Alpharetta over the weekend, according to the city’s mayor.
Alpharetta Mayor Jim Gilvin issued a statement Sunday afternoon saying: “On behalf of the City of Alpharetta and the City Council, I am disturbed and deeply disappointed by these flyers.”
Alpharetta police are investigating the incident and will coordinate with law enforcement agencies where similar acts have been committed, according to the mayor.
In February, antisemitic flyers were distributed in some predominantly Jewish neighborhoods in metro Atlanta, including in Sandy Springs and Dunwoody. That followed similar tactics used by antisemitic groups in the weeks and months prior. Residents in Newnan, Macon, Carrollton, Rockmart, Columbus and Cartersville also reported finding plastic bags with flyers inside them.
In May, residents in Roswell found flyers with anti-Jewish messages.
In June, members of an antisemitic hate group gathered in Macon and held a rally outside a synagogue in Cobb County, waving swastika flags and displaying propaganda.
Gov. Brian Kemp and Georgia U.S. Sens. Raphael Warnock and Jon Osoff condemned the rally, with Kemp calling it shameful.
Gilvin said in his statement that the flyers distributed overnight Saturday in “several neighborhoods” in Alpharetta, a suburb north of Atlanta, appear “similar to those that have been distributed in other area cities in recent months.”
“As a City, we fully support the freedoms provided by the First Amendment, but denounce antisemitism in all its forms,” Gilvin’s statement said. “Alpharetta is a diverse, welcoming, and inviting community, one that values and supports our differences. Hate has no place in Alpharetta, and it is not who we are.”
The statement also said anyone with information that could help the investigation should contact the Alpharetta Department of Public Safety at 678-297-6300 or use its online crime tip reporting tool.
