A Democratic Senate candidate from Maine, Graham Platner, has announced plans to remove a tattoo after realizing it bears a resemblance to a Nazi symbol.
“I wasn’t aware that this tattoo looked like a Nazi symbol until reporters and officials in D.C. brought it to my attention,” Platner stated in a Tuesday interview with Politico.
He expressed that had he known, he would never have chosen to keep it on his body. “It’s offensive to imply that I did this intentionally. I’m already looking into having it removed,” he added.
This controversy began when the Senate Republican campaign arm lodged charges against him due to the tattoo, which is similar to the German word “Totenkopf,” translating to “death’s head,” a symbol used by Hitler’s forces during the Nazi era, according to reports. The Anti-Defamation League classifies the Totenkopf as a hate symbol, associated with neo-Nazi and white supremacist groups, though the standard skull and crossbones is not.
In a defense on the liberal podcast Pod Save America, Platner maintained that he was unaware of the Nazi connotation when he got the tattoo. “I’m not a secret Nazi,” he asserted, explaining that his remarks on the podcast contextually showed where he stands on issues like Nazism and anti-Semitism. He noted that such ideologies are completely contrary to his views.
The issue gained further attention when a family video of Platner surfaced online, showing him shirtless and displaying the tattoo while performing a lip-sync rendition of Miley Cyrus’ “Wrecking Ball” at his brother’s wedding in Croatia back in 2007. He remarked on the unexpected embarrassment, mentioning how he had kept the moment mostly private, sharing it only at family gatherings historically.
On Tuesday, Jewish Insider reported that a former acquaintance recalled Platner once identifying the tattoo knowingly, stating, “He said, ‘Oh, this is my Totenkopf,’” with a somewhat playful tone. However, The Hill has not verified this claim independently, and Platner’s campaign did not reply to inquiries for comment.
