Hyatt Hotels Corp called symbols of hate “abhorrent” in a statement on Sunday after the stage used at the Conservative Political Action Committee, hosted at one of their hotels this year was compared to a Nazi symbol.
Hyatt said the American Conservative Union, which organizes CPAC oversees all aspects of the conference, including stage design.
“With CPAC’s denial of any intentional connection to hate symbols and our concerns over the safety of guests and colleagues in what could have been a disruptive situation, we allowed the event to continue”, Hyatt said on Sunday, according to Reuters.
“We take the concern raised about the prospect of symbols of hate being included in the stage design at CPAC 2021 very seriously as all such symbols are abhorrent and unequivocally counter to our values as a company,” they added.
After images of the stage went viral on Saturday night for resembling an othala rune, a Nazi symbol, American Conservative Union chairman Matt Schlapp blasted critics. He called talks about the design of the stage “outrageous and slanderous”.
“Stage design conspiracies are outrageous and slanderous,” he said in a statement. “We have a long standing commitment to the Jewish community. Cancel culture extremists must address antisemitism within their own ranks. CPAC proudly stands with our Jewish allies, including those speaking from this stage.”
