CANDLES Holocaust Museum condemns Rep. Jim Lucas post for Nazi reference

Terre Haute-based CANDLES Holocaust Museum and Education Center on Wednesday condemned a post Rep. Jim Lucas made to Facebook that he attributed to Joseph Goebbels, the Nazi Party's top propaganda official during World War II.

After the museum released its statement, the Republican from Seymour drove to the museum for a tour and to talk to officials there, he and the museum posted to Facebook Thursday. Lucas did not return a call from IndyStar.

Lucas, who has previously faced calls to resign and been criticized for divisive social media comments, had posted a screenshot of a webpage with the words "Joseph Goebbels: On the "Big Lie" and "On the Jewish question" as his cover photo Monday.

Underneath is a quote that is often attributed, it appears incorrectly, to Goebbels.

"If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it," the quote reads. "The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie. It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the State.”

Some think the origin is a reference to a description in Adolf Hitler's book "Mein Kampf" regarding the Jewish people.

"We are shocked and horrified that an Indiana lawmaker would make such a statement about Hitler's chief architect and purveyor of hate speech, ultimately leading to the murder of over 6 million Jews in the Holocaust," CANDLES said in a statement Wednesday on its Facebook page. "Hate propaganda was the driving force behind the Holocaust, and those seeds of hate have been, and are being planted, today in the United States.

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CANDLES on Wednesday also had urged House Speaker Todd Huston to condemn Lucas' actions. Huston could not immediately be reached by IndyStar.

Lucas took the post down within hours after posting it Monday after receiving criticism, saying on his social media page that he was not comparing the United States government to the Nazi Party. He in fact appeared to be referencing the federal government's reaction to COVID-19 and vaccines.

He also drove to the Terre Haute-based museum to take a tour and a photo with museum officials that was posted Thursday on his own and the museum's Facebook page. The museum characterized it as a positive visit in its post and Lucas called learning about "the personal history of Eva Kor is truly an incredible experience" in his own post. In his own post, Lucas also indicated he felt unfairly attacked and misunderstood.

"Rep. Lucas came to visit CANDLES on his own accord, eager to learn more about the museum, Eva Kor, and the lessons of the Holocaust," the museum posted. "It was a positive visit, and we shared a great conversation about the importance of Holocaust education in Indiana. We better understand the events that unfolded earlier this week and appreciate opportunities to build stronger communities through conversations like we had today."

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Lucas defends himself on Facebook

Lucas has made multiple posts on his Facebook page defending his post.

"It was a quote of him explaining how easy it is for evil to begin and to grow," Lucas said on his Facebook page. "Why would one not want to learn from and understand this confession?

He added that he was not comparing the current government to the Nazi Party, "only attempting to educate people on how evil can begin and learn the possible depth of the dark path it can lead to, that history shows can know no end."

He went on to criticize the government's handling of COVID-19.

Chad Harmon, Lucas' Democratic opponent in the upcoming general election, has also criticized Lucas' post on Twitter.

"Hi, I’m Chad. I’m not a Nazi," he tweeted earlier this week. "Please vote for me. Thanks."

Previous controversial Facebook posts

Lucas has a history of making controversial comments on Facebook. 

In December 2016, he posted a meme on Facebook of a woman in a car trunk with the caption: "Wanna know who loves you more: your wife or your dog? Lock them both in your trunk and see who's happy to see you when you let them out."

In January 2017, Lucas was criticized for another Facebook post he shared after the post-inauguration Women's March. The post showed a police officer in riot gear, pepper-spraying a woman in the face, with the overlaying text: "Participation trophies, now in liquid form."

Lucas deleted and apologized for the posts in December 2016 and January 2017 after he received criticism from the Indiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence.

In June 2017, he posted a letter to Facebook saying women should arm themselves to avoid becoming victims of rape. While he indicated he wanted to empower women, others accused him of victim blaming.

In 2019, Lucas was criticized for posting a photo of a gallows with two rope nooses on a WISH-TV story about a Black man who pleaded guilty to rape.

Lucas told IndyStar at the time that he believes in capital punishment and has posted the photo multiple times on social media under various stories involving both Black and white perpetrators.

In May 2020, Lucas posted a photo on Facebook of Black kids dancing with the words "We gon' get free money!" in protest of federal bailouts. He told IndyStar he happened to find a picture of Black kids dancing in the meme generator. After talking to IndyStar about that incident, he posted a picture of himself with the same words.

Last year, he called slavery "tragically a way of humanity" during a Facebook exchange with a Black orthopedic surgeon in Houston, Texas, and also asked him if he got any scholarships because of his skin color.

Call IndyStar reporter Kaitlin Lange at 317-432-9270 or email her at kaitlin.lange@indystar.com. Follow her on Twitter: @kaitlin_lange.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Holocaust museum condemns Rep. Jim Lucas post for Nazi reference