White nationalist group's stickers found lining route of South Side Irish Parade

Stickers advertising a white nationalist hate group were found along the route of Sunday's South Side Irish Parade, according to 19th Ward Alderman Matt O'Shea.

On Monday morning, O'Shea learned through social media posts that stickers for the American Identity Movement had been found on up to 20 light posts on Western Avenue between 99th and 119th streets.

The American Identity Movement is a renamed version of Identity Evropa, an established white nationalist group that helped organize the Unite the Right rally in 2017 in Charlottesville, Virginia. Identity Evropa has been identified as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, which noted in a blog post earlier this month that the group had been rebranded as the American Identity Movement.

"The racist and anti-Semitic positions espoused by this organization do not reflect the values and character of our community," O'Shea said in a letter emailed to constituents. "We must forcefully speak out against this hatred and counter it with our own message of unity."

O'Shea said he contacted a list of city agencies about the stickers - including Chicago Police, the Department of Streets and Sanitation and the Commission on Human Relations.

"When I contacted all departments, no one was aware of this," O'Shea told the Sun-Times.

For the full story, click here.