PUT-IN-BAY, Ohio — Put-in-Bay-area social media groups have been airing frustrations with the rowdy and unmanageable crowds that led the village's police department to call in SWAT teams from nearby counties to help quell the chaos.
But some in online groups have blasted racist and classist jabs at minority groups, used various slurs against Black people, made references to Jason Aldean's controversial "Try That in a Small Town" song that has been labeled as "pro-lynching" by critics and even said there should be a "white only weekend."
WTOL 11 brought these comments to Put-in-Bay's police chief, James Kimble, who did not mince words.
He made clear that the guests the island sees are from all parts of the Midwest and beyond and that there are no singular groups responsible for all of the trouble. He condemned the commenters who have used the chaos from Saturday as an excuse to post hate speech online.
"No, our department does not stand for it. Our mayor, our council, no one stands for that," Kimble said. "And obviously, me being a man of color, no, we don't tolerate that kind of behavior. If you talk to a business owner or a typical islander, that's not their mindset."
Racist comments after Put-in-Bay incident Saturday
Despite the racist comments that have dotted Put-in-Bay-related social media pages since Saturday, Kimble said throughout his three years on the island, he's never had serious concerns about racism.
He said that while the comments are despicable, they don't represent Put-in-Bay's population as a whole.
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