“White Lives Matter” Slogan Earns Two Dutch Men Imprisonment for Racism

A court in the Netherlands sentenced two young men to jail time for projecting slogans highlighting the need to protect white people from violence onto buildings in Rotterdam and Eindhoven. The slogans used were considered racist by the judge.

The ‘incident’ took place on New Year’s Eve in 2023, when phrases such as “White lives matter” and “we must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children” were projected onto Rotterdam’s Erasmus Bridge.

The prosecutor argued that the slogan “White lives matter” constitutes an insult to people with dark skin. Both suspects, identified as John A. and Daniel S. (25 and 35 years old at the time), lost their appeal and now face six months in prison, which Dutch mainstream media describes as a “light sentence”. They faced charges such as insulting a group, inciting discrimination, disseminating discriminatory messages and possessing discriminatory stickers.