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Hagerstown Mayor Bruchey Criticized For Social-Media Comment Calling London’s Muslim Mayor A Terrorist

July 11th, 2018 by WCBC Radio

The Herald Mail reports that Hagerstown Mayor Bob Bruchey came under fire for social-media comments calling the Muslim mayor of London a "terrorist."  "I don't blame (President Donald) Trump for not going in (January). Who would want to visit with this terrorist leading London," Bruchey wrote in a comment posted Monday on Facebook. Bruchey also linked to an article about Sadiq Khan's approval of a balloon depicting Trump as a cartoon baby to be flown over the Houses of Parliament during his visit to the United Kingdom this week.

 

The comment prompted a disapproving response from Brittany Wedd, who shared screenshots of the exchange publicly to her Facebook page.

"I am seriously ashamed of this post and it is incredibly Islamaphobic," she wrote back to Bruchey. "You should be ashamed of yourself."

In a follow-up exchange, Bruchey commented that "this isn't about him being Muslim, this is about him being a POS."

Wedd's post had received about 60 comments by Tuesday evening, with many criticizing the mayor's remarks as "racist" or "bigoted." Others wrote that he should resign or issue an apology to the city's Muslim community.

"That's certainly insensitive," Ed Poling, coordinator of the Interfaith Coalition of Washington County, said in a telephone interview. "I hope that this doesn't represent his attitude toward people of different faiths in our community. And if it is, he needs to make an apology about that."

Reached for comment Tuesday morning, Bruchey said he had no comment on the posts, telling a reporter "they'll have to get over it."

Wedd, who is director of operations at Discovery Station, a nonprofit organization in downtown Hagerstown, also declined further comment.

 

Khan, a social Democrat, has served as mayor of London since May 2016. During that time, England's capital has been the site of several terrorist attacks, including incidents involving bombs and vehicles used as battering rams against pedestrians in 2017.

"(Khan) has no ties to terrorism and has led a city through its grief through multiple terrorist attacks," Wedd wrote in her Facebook post. "Whether or not you agree with his policies, calling him a terrorist is blatant Islamaphobia. It is a statement with purpose and it is one filled with bigotry."

Trump has been critical of Khan's response to terrorist attacks on his personal Twitter account.

Bruchey, a Republican, is serving his fourth term as the city's mayor. He was elected in 1997, appointed in 2009, elected in 2009 and again in 2016, when Hagerstown removed party affiliations from its elections.

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