'Bullies': Neo-Nazis Appear At MA Hotel Shelter Amid Statewide Crisis

MARLBOROUGH, MA — A neo-Nazi group over the weekend targeted refugee families staying at a Marlborough hotel, part of a wider family shelter crisis in Massachusetts that's the subject of a state of emergency.

Marlborough police on Saturday night responded to a Northborough Road hotel after a report of a disturbance and encountered more than a dozen apparent neo-Nazis. Police spokesman Sgt. Zachary Attaway said Thursday the department has stepped up patrols near the hotel.

The demonstration drew condemnation from local officials. The refugees, who are mainly from Haiti, arrived in Marlborough in July. State officials placed the families in the hotel due to a lack of space in traditional family shelters in the state. Hotels across Massachusetts are being used to shelter close to 2,000 families. Some are homeless, and some are refugees from outside the state.

State Sen. Jamie Eldridge, D-Marlborough, identified the neo-Nazis as members of the group NSC-131. Eldridge said the demonstration in Marlborough is part of a series the group plans to make at hotel shelters in the state.

In social media post, the neo-Nazis called the families staying in Marlborough "invaders."

"The NSC-131 members who visited Marlborough, cowards who cover their faces so that no one knows who they are, are xenophobic and racist," Eldridge said. "I stand in solidarity with the new arrivals being placed in hotels, shelters, and temporary housing across Massachusetts, including in my district."

U.S. Rep. Lori Trahan said the wider community will not accept a hate group's presence in the area.

"The United States is a nation built by immigrants from all over the world, and Massachusetts has benefitted mightily from the contributions of refugees and immigrants for generations," Trahan said. "We're not going to stand idly by while a bunch of neo-Nazi bullies try to intimidate refugees who legally came to this nation in search of a better life for their families."

Marlborough has seen hate-group activity before. The white supremacist group Patriot Front — the same group that marched through Boston in July — has either distributed propaganda or vandalized property on five occasions since early 2022, according to the Anti-Defamation League's HEAT map. The most recent incident was recorded in May.

Last week, Gov. Maura Healey called up 250 National Guard members to respond to the state's shelter crisis. The guard members will be coordinating services for families entering the shelter system. Some families are being placed by the state in hotels with no resources — including basics like toiletries and clothes — leaving local cities and towns to hold fundraisers.

Healey in early August declared a state of emergency related to the overburdened state shelter system. Massachusetts is the only state with a law that requires the state to shelter homeless families.