A Christchurch insulation company has come under fire for openly using white supremacist and Nazi-related symbolism as part of their branding and advertising.
Beneficial Insulation uses the “Black Sun” as part of its logo while advertising its services as starting at $14.88 per metre – a number used as a common hate symbol.
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Both symbols appeared inscribed on images of guns posted on Twitter by alleged Christchurch mosque shooter Brenton Tarrant in the time leading up to the terror attack.
The Black Sun was designed under the guidance of Nazi SS leader Heinrich Himmler and is commonly used by neo-Nazi groups and occult subcultures such as Satanism.
1488 is a combination of two popular white supremacist numeric symbols. The first symbol is 14, which is shorthand for the "14 Words" slogan: "We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children."
The second is 88, which stands for "Heil Hitler" (H being the 8th letter of the alphabet). Together, the numbers form a general endorsement of white supremacy and its beliefs.
Beneficial Insulation is registered to a Christchurch address and majority-owned by a man called Phillip Arps.
Arps’ personal YouTube channel features one upload titled “The Greatest Son Of Europe Ever” and features five minutes of Nazi imagery, including prominent inclusion of footage of concentration camps.
While his list of recently-liked videos include: “Tribute to Nationalism”, “Orania: Homeland for Whites in South Africa”, “The Ethnic Genetic Interests of Europeans” and “The State of White America.”
Arps’ business website and Facebook page have both been taken offline since Friday’s terror attack and a spokesperson for the Insulation Association of New Zealand (IAONZ) told Stuff it had removed the company from its website when it became aware of the situation.
Mammoth Insulation, a local manufacturer of insulation, responded to a member of the public’s concerned messages about Beneficial Insulation by saying they will stop any supply of their product to them.
“We are extremely concerned by the reports we have read about this company and have no interest in dealing with companies or people of this ideology.
“If there is any direct supply of our product to them – it will stop. If supply is indirect we will make the wholesaler aware.”
Newshub has requested comment from Beneficial Insulation but is yet to receive a response.
Newshub.
