Several West Virginia government employees have been suspended after a photo emerged depicting a training class of roughly 30 correctional officers performing a Nazi salute.
Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety Director Jeff Sandy sent a letter to all employees Wednesday describing the photo as distasteful, hurtful, disturbing, highly insensitive, and completely inappropriate.
The photo, on state letterhead, shows almost all of Basic Training Class No. 18 displaying the Nazi salute. Text above the photo reads: HAIL BYRD!
Sandys letter states that the employees have been suspended and are under investigation, although it does not describe the photo itself.
Brian Abraham, an attorney for Gov. Jim Justice, said Thursday the Hail Byrd line refers to the training classs director.
The Nazi salute was used to hail Adolf Hitler, the Nazi Germany dictator who directed the slaughter of millions of Jews and others during the Holocaust, before and during World War II.
WCHS-TV first reported on Sandys letter, although not the content of the photo.
Rabbi Victor Urecki, of Bnai Jacob Synagogue in Charleston and regular figure around the Capitol, saw the photo. He thanked state officials for briefing him and other religious leaders in advance, but expressed concern over what comes next.
Seeing the photo was deeply shocking and troubling to me and I know it will be devastating to not just members of my community but any person of decency," he said.
"This will be create difficult days and hard conversations for our state. While I want to hear more about how it all unfolded, this terrible incident reminds me we have a lot of work to do in educating about the dangers of hate and the evils perpetrated in the past and can happen again.