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‘Repulsive and disgusting’: Wisconsin officials condemn neo-Nazi group after march in Madison

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‘Repulsive and disgusting’: Wisconsin officials condemn neo-Nazi group after march in Madison


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MADISON, Wisc. — A group of nearly two dozen people waving flags displaying Nazi insignia and chanting antisemitic rhetoric marched through parts of Wisconsin’s capital city on Saturday, sparking condemnation from state and local officials.

Demonstrators at the march were part of the “Blood Tribe,” a right-wing, neo-Nazi group with hardline white supremacist views. The group, dressed in red shirts with “Blood Tribe” written on the back, marched in downtown Madison and on state Capitol grounds.

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Group members chanted “Israel is not our friend,” threatened “There will be blood” and shouted racial slurs at bystanders while marching. According to social media posts, the group also briefly marched on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus and stopped in front of a local synagogue, Gates of Heaven.

While state and local officials condemned the group’s hateful rhetoric, the Madison Police Department said the group had demonstrated lawfully.

“To see neo-Nazis marching in our streets and neighborhoods and in the shadow of our State Capitol building spreading their disturbing, hateful messages is truly revolting,” Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said in a statement Saturday. “Let us be clear: neo-Nazis, antisemitism, and white supremacy have no home in Wisconsin. We will not accept or normalize this rhetoric and hate. It’s repulsive and disgusting, and I join Wisconsinites in condemning and denouncing their presence in our state in the strongest terms possible.”

The group’s march comes amid skyrocketing reports of antisemitism and Islamophobia across the United States as the Israel-Hamas war stretches into its second month. The march is also the latest neo-Nazi demonstration that has made national headlines, including gatherings outside the Walt Disney World theme park in Orlando, Florida, earlier this year.

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Rise in antisemitism, Islamophobia: Feds, local officials on high alert as reports of antisemitism, Islamophobia surge

What is the ‘Blood Tribe’ group?

The Blood Tribe became a membership organization in 2021 and claims to have chapters across the United States and Canada, according to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL). The group “openly directs its vitriol at Jews, ‘non-whites’ and the LGBTQ+ community.”

The group led demonstrations nationwide in 2023, including a hateful protest at a July “Pride in the Park” event in Watertown, Wisconsin, about 40 miles northeast of Madison. Members of the group brandished rifles, displayed swastikas, and hurled homophobic slurs and threats at LGBTQ+ people during the event.

Christopher Pohlhaus, nicknamed “Hammer,” is the Blood Tribe’s leader and a former U.S. Marine. Pohlhaus was one of two unmasked figures at Saturday’s neo-Nazi march.

Pohlhaus, originally from Texas, founded the group in 2021, according to the ADL. He was present at other Blood Tribe neo-Nazi events in 2023.

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‘No place that we feel safe’

The University of Wisconsin-Madison criticized the group’s march and Jennifer Mnookin, the university’s chancellor, called their presence in Madison “utterly repugnant” in a statement Saturday.

“I am horrified to see these symbols here in Madison,” Mnookin said. “Hatred and antisemitism are completely counter to the university’s values, and the safety and well-being of our community must be our highest priorities.”

Rabbi Bonnie Margulis, executive director of Wisconsin Faith Voices for Justice, said people living in Madison sometimes have a false sense of security given its reputation as a progressive enclave.

“We’re living in very, very scary times,” Margulis told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, part of the USA TODAY Network. “The American Jewish community is very scared right now, as is the Muslim community and the Sikh community… There’s no place that we feel safe.”

New warning on war’s fallout: ‘Violent extremists targeting Jewish or Muslim communities’

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Surge of antisemitic, Islamophobic incidents

Federal, state and local authorities have been on high alert as reports of antisemitic and Islamophobic incidents have increased across the United States since the start of the Israel-Hamas war. Last month, FBI Director Chris Wray warned violent extremists could draw inspiration from Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel.

According to the ADL, the group has documented 832 antisemitic incidents of assault, vandalism, and harassment between Oct. 7 and Nov. 7.

“This represents a 316 percent increase from the 200 incidents reported during the same period in 2022,” the ADL said in a November survey.

And the Council On American Islamic Relations (CAIR) said there has been an “unprecedented” increase in complaints of anti-Muslim or anti-Arab bias in the month since violence escalated in the Middle East. CAIR said it has received 1,283 requests for help and reports of bias between Oct. 7 and Nov. 4.

Contributing: Christopher Cann and Will Carless, USA TODAY; Jessie Opoien, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

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Tyler Katzenberger’s reporting is supported by the Poynter and Google News Initiative Misinformation Student Fellowship Program.



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Wisconsin winter storm watch Thursday into Friday; what to expect

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Wisconsin winter storm watch Thursday into Friday; what to expect


The National Weather Service has issued a winter storm watch for portions of southeast Wisconsin. It takes effect Thursday night and runs through Friday morning.

The watch covers Fond du Lac and Sheboygan counties. Heavy snow will be possible, as much as 6 inches or more in some areas. 

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FOX6 Weather Extras

Meanwhile, FOX6Now.com offers a variety of extremely useful weather tools to help you navigate the stormy season. They include the following: 

FOX6 Storm Center app

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FOX6 News app

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What is the FOX Model?

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Maps and radar

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We have a host of maps and radars on the FOX6 Weather page that are updating regularly — to provide you the most accurate assessment of the weather. From a county-by-county view to the Midwest regional radar and a national view — it’s all there.

School and business closings

When the weather gets a little dicey, schools and businesses may shut down. Monitor the latest list of closings, cancellations, and delays reported in southeast Wisconsin.

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Community members wrestle with grief in aftermath of Wisconsin school shooting

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Community members wrestle with grief in aftermath of Wisconsin school shooting


MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Community members in Wisconsin continued to wrestle with grief and called for change in the aftermath of a school shooting that killed a teacher and a student and wounded six others.

Several hundred people gathered outside the Wisconsin State Capitol for a vigil Tuesday night to honor those slain at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison the day before, with some passing candles to each other and standing close against the winter chill.

Flowers and candles are placed outside the Abundant Life Christian School Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024 in Madison, Wis., following a shooting on Monday. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
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A supporter signs a cross during a candlelight vigil Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024, outside the Wisconsin Capitol in Madison, Wis., following a shooting at the Abundant Life Christian School on Monday, Dec. 16. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
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Among those in attendance was Naomi Allen, 16, who was in a nearby classroom Monday when a 15-year-old girl attacked people in a study hall before fatally shooting herself.

“It’s doesn’t matter who you are or where you are, something like this could happen. There’s nothing that is going to exempt someone,” Allen said at the vigil.

Allen’s father, Jay Allen, reflected on the dangers students face these days.

“When I was in school these things never happened,” he said. “This country at some point needs to take mental health seriously and we need to pour resources into it. We really need some changes in the way we handle that issue.”

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Supporters hold candles during a candlelight vigil Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024, outside the Wisconsin Capitol in Madison, Wis., following a shooting at the Abundant Life Christian School on Monday, Dec. 16. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

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The motive for the shooting appears to be a “combination of factors,” Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said Tuesday as he appealed to the public to call in to a tip line and share what they might know about the shooter.

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He offered no details about what that motive might be, though he said bullying at Abundant Life Christian School would be investigated. He also said police are investigating writings that may have been penned by the shooter, Natalie Rupnow, and could shed light on her actions.

“Identifying a motive is our top priority, but at this time it appears that the motive is a combination of factors,” Barnes told reporters.

Two students among the six people wounded Monday remain in critical condition. Officials have declined to disclose the names of the victims.

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“Leave them alone,” Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway said.

The school shooting was the latest among dozens across the U.S. in recent years, including especially deadly ones in Newtown, Connecticut; Parkland, Florida; and Uvalde, Texas.

The shootings have set off fervent debates about gun control and frayed the nerves of parents whose children are growing up accustomed to doing active shooter drills in their classrooms. But school shootings have done little to move the needle on national gun laws.

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Supporters hold candles during a candlelight vigil Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024, outside the Wisconsin Capitol in Madison, Wis., following a shooting at the Abundant Life Christian School on Monday, Dec. 16. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
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Supporters sign crosses during a candlelight vigil Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024, outside the Wisconsin Capitol in Madison, Wis., following a shooting at the Abundant Life Christian School on Monday, Dec. 16. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

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Madison Police chief Shon F. Barnes speaks at a news conference Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024, in Madison, Wis., following a shooting at the Abundant Life Christian School on Monday. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

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Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway speaks at a news conference Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024, in Madison, Wis., following a shooting at the Abundant Life Christian School on Monday. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
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School shootings by teenage females have been extremely rare in U.S. history, with males in their teens and 20s carrying out the majority of them, said David Riedman, founder of the K-12 School Shooting Database.

Abundant Life is a nondenominational Christian school — prekindergarten through high school — with approximately 420 students. Barbara Wiers, the school’s director of elementary and school relations, said the school does not have metal detectors but uses cameras and other security measures.

Barnes said police were talking with the shooter’s father and other family members, who were cooperating, and searching the shooter’s home.

The shooter’s parents, who are divorced, jointly shared custody of their child, but the shooter primarily lived with her 42-year-old father, according to court documents.

Investigators believe the shooter used a 9mm pistol, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation.

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Supporters hold candles during a candlelight vigil Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024, outside the Wisconsin Capitol in Madison, Wis., following a shooting at the Abundant Life Christian School on Monday, Dec. 16. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

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Madison resident Cristian Cuahutepitzi said he attended Tuesday’s vigil to let the families of the victims know “we’re thinking of them.” He said his uncle’s two daughters go to the school.

“They’re still a little bit shook,” he said.

Joe Gothard, the superintendent of the Madison Metropolitan School District, said at the vigil that the tragedy happened less than two blocks away from his childhood home. He said it wasn’t enough to say the district would work on safety.

“We need to connect like we are tonight, each and every day and make a commitment that we know we’re there for one another, hopefully to avoid preventable tragedies like yesterday,” he said.

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A prayer service was also held Tuesday night at City Church Madison, which is affiliated with the school

Several teachers from the school prayed aloud one by one during the service, speaking into a microphone and standing in a line. One middle school teacher asked for courage, while another sought help quieting her own soul.

“God, this isn’t a Abundant Life Christian School tragedy,” said Derrick Wright, the youth pastor at the church. “This is a community tragedy. This is a nation tragedy.”

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Associated Press writers Alanna Durkin Richer, Ed White, Josh Funk, Hallie Golden and Ryan Foley and photographer Morry Gash contributed to this report.

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Unlicensed ‘midwife’ Heather Baker may face criminal charges in Brown County

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Unlicensed ‘midwife’ Heather Baker may face criminal charges in Brown County


A Wisconsin woman who practiced midwifery without a license for more than a decade has been referred to prosecutors for potential criminal investigation, Brown County District Attorney David Lasee confirmed Tuesday.

Heather Baker, a 49-year old De Pere woman, marketed herself as a “traditional midwife” and traveled across the U.S. and Mexico to assist women with home births – despite being told to stop by Wisconsin’s licensing agency in 2014. 

As first reported by the Journal Sentinel and Green Bay Press-Gazette, the Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services opened an investigation into Baker after 10 complaints were filed against her during a two-month span this summer. 

Several of the complaints suggest Baker’s practices may violate state regulations governing licensed midwives and standards of care accepted nationally by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

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Those practices include using drugs to delay or induce labor, discouraging ultrasounds and other prenatal care, and failing to transfer mothers to the hospital in potentially dangerous situations, according to the complaints.  

Baker did not respond to a request for comment.

Department of Safety and Professional Services spokesperson John Beard declined comment other than to say the department’s investigation is ongoing.

The complaints being investigated by the agency span incidents in Florida, Rhode Island and Mexico, including one regarding the death of Jennifer Nosek’s baby during her home birth in Sayulita, Mexico.

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Nosek and her husband Rene Lemos, whose son was stillborn in April, are pursuing a case of criminal negligence against Baker in Mexico.

The couple allege in the lawsuit that “Baker’s negligent process as a pseudo-midwife” led several mothers to experience complications in their births due to the use of misoprostol — a drug used to treat postpartum hemorrhaging, and in some cases, to induce labor. 

A group of mothers in Mexico who filed complaints with Wisconsin regulators and helped gather evidence for Nosek’s lawsuit released a statement in response to Baker’s referral for potential criminal investigation.

“Our hope is that the irreparable damage she has caused can be brought to light, accountability can be sought through the justice system and more objective information about her services will become apparent in hope that future families are saved from the traumatic and tragic outcomes others have experienced at her hands,” the statement read.

Alyssa N. Salcedo is a data and investigative journalist pursuing her master’s in journalism at DePaul University. She can be reached at asalced4@depaul.edu. 

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Jessica Van Egeren of the Journal Sentinel staff contributed to this article.



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