A fast food restaurant named Honky Donky in the Argentinian town of Rafaela has ignited a wave of public outrage after offering a menu featuring offensive references to historical figures, including Adolf Hitler and Anne Frank. The establishment’s menu items, such as the “Adolf” cheese and bacon-covered French fries and the “Ana Frank” hamburger, are facing severe criticism for their lack of regard for historical sensitivities. The controversy came to light when the Rafaela Jewish Community Facebook page condemned the restaurant’s menu, expressing their “most heartfelt disapproval and indignation.” The community urged Honky Donky to remove menu items associated with the Holocaust, specifically those referencing Hitler, Benito Mussolini, and Anne Frank. Ariel Rosenthal, a representative of the Rafaela Jewish Community, stated that they were initially made aware of the disturbing marketing campaign in March. They engaged in discussions with the restaurant’s owners, who had promised to take down the offensive items. However, the menu choices remained unchanged, prompting the community’s strong rebuke. Responding to mounting criticism, Honky Donky issued an apology via Instagram. The restaurant also announced plans to rename the controversial menu items after “defenders of peace and human rights.” Proposed new names include iconic figures such as “Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Dalai Lama, Barack (sic) Obama, Teresa of Calcutta, Carlos Mujica, Nelson Mandela, Mikhail (sic) Gorbachev, Pope John Paul II, among others.” The incident has triggered a renewed discussion about Argentina’s historical ties to Nazi Germany. Following the defeat of the Third Reich, numerous former members sought refuge in Argentina, purportedly with some level of support from the Argentine government. This controversial history has contributed to the resurgence of Nazi ideologies in pockets of South American society. In recent years, far-right movements in the region have seen a rise in Nazi sympathies. Examples of this trend abound, including a school shooting in Brazil in November 2022 by a former student donning Nazi symbols, resulting in fatalities and injuries. Another incident in Brazil saw a teenager attack a school using homemade bombs while wearing a Swastika. Instances of Nazi glorification have also emerged in other Latin American countries. A Colombian police academy hosted a state-sponsored “cultural exchange” event where participants dressed as Nazis, with one person impersonating Adolf Hitler. A Mexican couple even held a Nazi-themed wedding, bizarrely citing Hitler’s veganism as their inspiration. And in Peru, authorities seized a significant amount of cocaine stamped with Swastika symbols en route to Europe in May. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
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