Southbury Is the Latest Community Targeted With Supremacist Literature

Southbury is now the eighth Connecticut town this year to become the target of white supremacist literature.

Residents on one street found the booklets in their driveways two weeks ago, and they’re asking for anyone with information to come forward.

“It’s something that you would never really think would happen in such a beautiful town,” said Southbury resident Collete Mombo.

She’s among the residents upset over the sandwich bags filled with hate messages.

“They’re called oatmeal racists,” said Vinny of Southbury. He preferred not to give his last name. “They put white supremacist literature in a bag of oatmeal. I really don’t know what they’re doing.”

Tara Bealls-Gomes also received a packet and tried to read through the material inside.

“I had to stop many, many times. It took me more than one day to read it. It’s disturbing,” Beall-Gomes said.

She says there were also fliers near a park. As a mom and wife in a biracial family, she immediately thought of her young son.

“That’s terrifying to think that he would not be welcomed to play on the same playground as his friends," Beall-Gomes said.

Connecticut State Police say they are aware of the pamphlets left at the homes.

Vinny says his sister’s family also got the fliers and his nephews, too, are biracial.

“They rang the doorbell late at night. My nephews were in their pajamas playing video games and two white supremacists came to the door and put disgusting, horrible literature on their door,” he said.

Elected leaders in town say it’s unacceptable.

“Hate has no home in Southbury,” said John Diehl, a Democratic member of the Board of Selectmen.

In June, the board approved a Community Relations Taskforce. Their mission: acceptance and understanding of the diverse makeup of Southbury.

They also stand against all forms of hate and bigotry targeted at individuals and groups.

“We do whatever we can to stop this from happening,” said Mombo, who is also a task force member.

They say it’s particularly upsetting because the town recently celebrated 85 years since they came together and stopped the development of a planned Nazi training camp in Southbury.

Now, they plan to come together just as they did nearly a century ago.

"If the community surrounds itself with hope and love, then it can show that those people aren’t welcome here,” Diehl said.