Everyone loves amusement parks. Whether you enjoy the rides, the food or just the atmosphere of people having a bloody good day out, they’re really good fun.
Of course, there’s always at least one ride that leaves you nervous and questioning your judgement in the queue. However, one theme park in Germany has maybe taken that a little too far – it’s come under fire after a video showed one of the rides unfortunately resembled a giant, swirling swastika.
I mean, come on. How did no one notice?
According to 7News.com.au, the Eagle Fly was only just recently added to the Tatzmania in Löffingen, in Germany’s Black Forest area.
However, it was only when a video of the ride was posted online that people started noticing an uncomfortable resemblance to the symbol – best known as a sinister emblem of the German Nazi forces in the early 20th century.
The first person to notice the design flaw was actually the amusement park owner Rüdiger Braun.
Braun told SWR that he wanted to ‘apologise to anyone who feels disturbed or offended by our design’ and that he’d be making sure no rides in the future look like this or any other Nazi symbol.
Once he saw the sign in the skies, he said he would ground it immediately and wait for it to be designed.
State Agency for Civic Education Michael Wehner also told the TV network: “There are company blind people who, due to their non-occupation with history or the political education of the present, do not immediately realise that this geometric form is historically a no-go.
“[But] one would have to recognise in the architectural design drawings, in which direction this geometric driving device goes.”
The manufacturer of the ride says the ‘heads of the ride’ will be ‘taken back and revised’.
Historically, the swastika has meant many things to different cultures – notably it is a symbol of divinity in religions such as Hinduism and Buddhism.
However, in the West it remains inextricably synonymous with the actions of the German Nazi party, particularly in relation to World War II, and is considered a symbol of hate.
The German and Austrian postwar criminal code makes it illegal to publicly display the swastika – among other symbols similarly linked to the Nazis – while it is also prohibited or restricted in other countries such as Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland.
*story by LADbible