Slayer have been accused of holding
Nazi sympathies due to the eagle logo bearing resemblance to the
Eagle atop swastika,
Schutzstaffel stickers on guitars and the lyrics of "
Angel of Death".
[46] The lyrics were inspired by the acts of
Josef Mengele,
[47] the doctor who committed atrocities against Jewish and Roma prisoners in the name of pseudo-scientific research during
World War II and who concentration camp inmates dubbed the "Angel of Death".
[48]
Slayer's cover of
Minor Threat's "Guilty Of Being White" raised questions about a possible message of
white supremacy in the band's music. Most of the controversy surrounding the cover involved the changing of the refrain "guilty of being white" to "guilty of being right" at the song's ending. This reportedly incensed Minor Threat frontman
Ian MacKaye, who stated "that is so offensive to me".
[49] Slayer fans are referred to as the Slaytanic
Wehrmacht,
[50] which refers to the armed forces of the Nazi-Germany.
In a 2004 interview with Tom Araya, when asked, "did critics realize you were wallowing in parody?", Araya replied, "No. People thought we were serious!...back then you had that
PMRC, who literally took everything to heart, when in actuality you're trying to create an image. You're trying to scare people on purpose".
[51]
Slayer are often labeled
Satanists due to their graphic lyrics and song titles dealing with death and Satan among other things. Tom stated they are not Satanists but find the subject of Satanism interesting.
[52] Tom Araya has faced down the charges of Satanism as far back as 1989 in interviews for the BBC2 documentary "Thrashed to death"[BBC TV 1989] he states that "he was and is a Catholic but found belief in himself".
[53]
Seventeen bus benches promoting the album
Christ Illusion in
Fullerton, California, were deemed offensive by city officials. They did not approve of the obscenity from the vehicles, saying the bands name pertains to murder
The song "
Jihad" off the album Christ Illusion sparked controversy amongst families of the 9/11 victims.
[55] The song deals with the attack from the perspective of a religious terrorist.
In