Niagara Region Chair Bob Gale resigned late Wednesday night after two anti-racism groups questioned why he owns a rare, signed copy of Adolf Hitler’s “Mein Kampf.”

In a letter to Municipal Affairs Minister Rob Flack circulated to the media just after 9 p.m., Gale noted he is a “passionate historian with a broad collection of historical art and artifacts.”

He said his collection includes an 1859 letter from anti-slavery advocate John Brown, plus letters from George Washington and Winston Churchill among other items.

He did not mention “Mein Kampf” by name but stated that “today, a member of the communist party circulated a dated document that listed my name as the owner of a historical book found in many libraries.”

Earlier Wednesday, Saleh Waziruddin, an executive member of the Niagara Region Anti-Racism Association, issued a news release saying that Gale paid thousands of dollars for a rare, signed copy of Adolf Hitler’s “Mein Kampf.”

He said the group received documentation from “someone concerned that Niagara’s highest municipal elected official owns a copy of such well-known, anti-Semitic literature” and demanded an explanation and apology from Gale.

Another group, Justice 4 Black Lives Niagara, made the same request.

In his letter to Flack, Gale did not directly address the concerns over “Mein Kampf,” but said since he “undertook the necessary work to start fixing the issues at the Niagara Region, there was a strong vocal minority who decided they would stop at nothing in order to keep their fiefdoms and addiction to power and tax dollars.”

“They wish to paint a picture that is untrue and hurtful to my family, my friends and those in Niagara that believe in the hard work I have undertaken.”

“This work is bigger than any one person, including me. This is about making the changes for the people of Niagara who desperately need and deserve change,” he said.

Appointed by Premier Doug Ford in December, Gale had been leading the charge to consider amalgamating Niagara’s 12 municipalities into one or four larger cities.

His proposal met strong opposition from some sectors, especially smaller towns like Niagara-on-the-Lake.

He later suggested revamping regional council and having it comprised solely of mayors of the municipalities with weighted voting based on population. That idea also sparked major pushback from some people.

Purchases of “Mein Kampf” by collectors have sparked controversy over the years.

“Mein Kampf,” German for “my struggle,” is Hitler’s autobiography and political manifesto, written in 1925.

It details his political philosophy, including anti-Semitic beliefs, and future plans for Germany and the world.

An invoice from National Book Auctions in New York, provided by Waziruddin’s organization, showed that Gale purchased an “inscribed” copy of “Mein Kampf for $6,345 in 2010.

Waziruddin said both the book and the signature were authenticated in 2018 in a report issued by the Certified Appraisers Guild of America.

The group said an appraiser’s report prepared by Jon K. Jouppien, a St. Catharines-based heritage consultant, valued the book at $16,000.

The report says the signature was more difficult to authenticate but concludes it likely is genuine. It also identifies the book as a first edition, second volume of the text.