An Arkansas police chief has resigned after calling for “Death to all Marxist Democrats”—referring to Biden voters—on a social media platform popular with the alt-right.
As the election results tilted in Joe Biden’s favor on Friday, Police Chief Lang Holland, a top cop in the small town of Marshall, encouraged attacks against Democrat voters on Parler, a message board used by right-wing groups like the Proud Boys after they got kicked off more-mainstream platforms. The Proud Boys, an all-male neo-fascist group that encouraged violence against its opponents, has long supported President Trump’s conservative agenda.
Holland, a member of the Parler groups “The Patriots” and “Ozark Proud Boys” himself, according to local NBC station KARK-TV, said he wanted to see Trump voters assault Biden voters after the president was reelected.
"When this is over and Trump is president for four more years. Do not go to sleep," one of the posts says, according to screenshots posted by KATV, the ABC affiliate in Little Rock. "Do not forget what these Marxist bastards have tried to do. When you see one in public get in their face do not give them any peace. Throw water on them at restaurants. Push them off sidewalks. Never let them forget they are traitors and have no right to live in this Republic after what they have done."
“Death to all Marxist Democrats,” another post says. “Take no prisoners, leave no survivors!”
Screenshots of Holland’s older posts captured by KATV reporter Viktoria Capek show he also believed that Joe Biden’s election would lead to a second Revolutionary War, in which pro-Trumpers would need to “eliminate the fraudsters” who won the election for the Democrats.
https://twitter.com/KATVViktoria/status/1325189344705957889?s=20
The posts have since been deleted from Parler, as Holland created a new account in an attempt to pass off his old one as a fake.
https://twitter.com/KATVViktoria/status/1325189361323790336?s=20
But his attempts to avoid the consequences of his online actions did not work. Marshall Mayor Kevin Elliot immediately condemned Holland’s posts online. After meeting with Holland, the chief resigned from his job, according to a statement released by the mayor on Saturday.
“The Marshall community does not in any way support or condone bullying or threats of violence to anyone of any political persuasion," Elliot said. "We are a welcoming community that is humbly working to build a bright future for all our citizens, whether they be long-term residents or new arrivals. Any statements to the contrary do not reflect the values of Marshall.”
This is not the first time Holland’s conservative views have landed him some national attention. In July, the AP reported that Lang was one of many conservative police leaders in Arkansas to defy Republican Gov. Asa Hutchison’s statewide mask mandate by not enforcing the rule among his officers.
“All I’m saying is if you want to wear a mask, you have the freedom to choose that,” Holland said at the time. “It should not be dictated by the nanny state.”
Holland is one of two police chiefs to lose his job thanks to reckless following this year’s unique election. In Alabama, Capt. Scott Walden of the Flomaton Police Department was placed on administrative leave after saying Biden voters “needed a bullet in their skull for treason.” Last month, a police officer in New York City was suspended without pay for using his patrol car and loudspeaker to show his support for the president.