Arcata Police investigating possible hate crime in Mad River Hospital ER

The Arcata Police Department has initiated a hate crime investigation over an anti-semitic sign placed above a restroom doorway at Mad River Community Hospital (MRCH) . The restroom is inside the Emergency Room and only accessible to patients and staff.

A witness noticed the sign last Monday, Jan. 29 inside the restroom, and photographed it. The sign bears elaborate Olde English lettering associated with Nazi/Third Reich signage, of the type popular among white supremacists.

It reads, “Butcher Zionist Pigs.” Embedded among the words are two images: one of an apparent executioner wielding an axe, and a pig in retro financier garb – a longstanding anti-semitic visual cliché.

When the photo surfaced online Friday, attempts to contact MRCH administrators proved fruitless, with emails and voicemails unanswered. Eventually, a switchboard operator directed a call to a nursing supervisor, who said he knew the sign’s described location, and that he would go address the matter.

Read more: Mad River Union (Arcata, CA)