Obama Campaign Workers Stung By Racist Incidents

Thursday May 15, 2008, 7:11 am
Noted and read, thanks Paige

Thursday May 15, 2008, 8:58 am
The Care2 Community has promoted your submission to the Care2 News Network Front Page.

Thanks for the comment, Stephen, and to all who read and noted this post!

Thursday May 15, 2008, 9:55 am
This is very sad - apparently, we are STILL not very civilized or intelligent....

Thursday May 15, 2008, 2:23 pm
Sadly, the issue of racism is a topic that we Americans like to avoid. These actions should not be a surprise to anyone. These are not isolated occurrences. Things like this happen daily to the average American. We need to address this issue openly and stop pretending that it does not exist except in small towns in the south. This article upsets me for many reasons. The main one is the ignorance and intolerance that is still crippling our society when dealing with race relations. The other is the way the article perpetuates the ideology that America has come out of the dark era of racial division and hate. I feel sorry for the children that were verbally assaulted for the simple fact that they were in support of Obama. I hope we as a people can one day over come this race issue and understand that we are all Americans and for us to be a true superpower in the world we need to unite as one nation.

Friday May 16, 2008, 3:39 am

This is of course depressing. There is such disparity between the feelings and hopes for unity in American society, as expressed through the Obama campaign, and then the grassroots racism widespread in our country.

I find the Southern Law Poverty Center an excellent site for keeping track of racism and hate crimes; their 'Intelligence Project' section, which monitors hate and extremist activity, is very instructive -http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intpro.jsp- as are the 'Intelligence Report' and 'Hatewatch Weekly.'

There is the "Hate Groups Map," too, where you can focus on a single state and find out which hate groups are active there: what they stand for and how they're active; how many there are; and where they're located.

Indiana has 18 such groups, white supremacists & neo-nazis galore, and they are spreading their message. The existance of so many in Indiana must certainly be symptomatic of a significant racist undercurrent there
( http://www.splcenter.org/intel/map/hate.jsp#s=IN ):

Council of Conservative Citizens, White Nationalist, IN
North American White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, Ku Klux Klan, Bloomington IN
United Northern and Southern Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, Ku Klux Klan, Bloomington IN
Imperial Klans of America, Ku Klux Klan, Center Point IN
Imperial Klans of America, Ku Klux Klan, Charlestown IN
Nation of Islam, Black Separatist, Indianapolis IN
Vinlanders Social Club, Racist Skinhead, Knightstown IN
Brotherhood of Klans Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, Ku Klux Klan, Lakeville IN
Yahweh's Sanctuary, White Nationalist, Martinsville IN
American National Socialist Workers' Party, Neo-Nazi, Muncie IN
Delaware County Skinheads, Racist Skinhead, Muncie IN
American National Socialist Workers' Party, Neo-Nazi, Portage IN
WTM Enterprises, White Nationalist, Roanoke IN
Aryan Nations, Neo-Nazi, South Bend IN
Culture Wars/Fidelity Press, Radical Traditionalist Catholic, South Bend IN
National Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, Ku Klux Klan, South Bend IN
St. Joseph Forum, Radical Traditionalist Catholic, South Bend IN
National Socialist Movement - NSM, Neo-Nazi, Wakarusa IN


This is from the Spring, 2008 issue:
"The Year in Hate
Active U.S. Hate Groups Rise to 888 in 2007"

Friday May 16, 2008, 3:43 am

I forgot to thank Paige for submitting this article - it's important to have that reality check and realize that Obama and his campaign are a provocation for the Klan member, neo-nazis, skin heads, & other racist extremists still operating in the US and likely to be a focal point for their hatred.

Friday May 16, 2008, 9:32 am
You're welcome, Jill, and thanks to all of you who left comments :)