Burning Crosses in .... Michigan?

[txaslftist]

I heard a report on NPR this morning to the effect that people in and around Detroit are having crosses burned either on their lawns or into their grass. The people are apparently either African American or mixed racial couples moving into "white" neighborhoods.

One person who had the cross burned into his grass went out and re-sodded it, but not until after his children had seen it. He told the kids it was someone trying to write the alphabet. He also said "if they think they're going to intimidate me, they don't know me."

I thought to myself, "Michigan? WTF?"

[fasttense]

1. Welcome to Bush's Amerika. Where all racists and hate mongers

flourish.

[_ed_]

2. That's actually not surprising -

A lot of people don't realize that there are more KKK chapters in PA, OH, and places like Michigan than the South.

The original KKK (from the south) died out around the turn of the last century. The "new" KKK sprung up in the 1920s as a response to the immigration of Eastern European people to America. There was a big backlash against Italians, Hungarians, etc. coming to America at the time. These KKK people were more against non WASPs coming to America than they were with blacks. (There aren't that many black people in those parts of the country, so it wasn't an issue for them, although I'm sure they didn't like them, either).

My parents lived in York, PA (southern PA) in the early 70s. We happen to be Italian, by the way. Several times, he would hear people mutter "WOP" or "DAGO" when he would enter a public place. My Mom still tells me the story of the first week they were there when a KKK rally drove right down the main street. My Mother was forced to use her maiden name (a German name)to get a job. They only lasted there for about a year before they couldn't take it anymore.

[gauguin57]

13. Yep -- southcentral PA still has Klan activity

They still raise their ugly, hooded heads every once in a while. There have been parades within the past 15 years in the area. White Power groups have hung around Perry County on and off, too.

I know lots of people in Lancaster County, PA, who still use the word "colored" all the time.

If a cross were burned around here, sadly, I wouldn't be surprised at all.

[bryant69]

3. The Midwest has historically been a hotbed of Klan activity

When the Klan was reconstituted in the 20's it did a lot better in states like Illinois and Indiana than it did in the south.

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[QC]

4. Michigan is the most segregated state in the country.

According to the U.S. Census, Michigan is the most segregated state in the nation. Five of the 25 most racially segregated metropolitan regions in America — Detroit, Saginaw, Flint, Benton Harbor, and Muskegon — are in Michigan. The next closest state is New York, with four. Two more Michigan metropolitan regions — Grand Rapids and Jackson — almost made the top 25.

Census figures also show that Michigan has the most segregated public school systems in the nation. For example, 613,000 students attend public schools in 83 school districts in Wayne, Macomb, and Oakland counties, according to an analysis by the National School Boards Association. Roughly 180,000 of those students are black and 82 percent of black students are enrolled in just three districts — Detroit, Highland Park, and Inkster. Some 90 percent of white students — 540,000 kids — are enrolled in Detroit-region schools where 10 percent or less of the students are black.

...Almost all of the state’s black residents — 96 percent of 1.4 million people — live in just 11 metropolitan regions in Michigan. That means that roughly 70 of the state’s 83 counties are overwhelmingly white, many with minority populations of less than 3 percent. Not even Mississippi in the depths of the Jim Crow era was as segregated as Michigan is today.

http://www.mlui.org/reportarticle.asp?fileid=16480

[Burma Jones]

5. This is just going to get worse

If we are going to continue the trend of devaluing labor, people of all hues are going to look for scapegoats. The problem is that these people really believe that they're just temporarily broke Millionaires and that there's some sort of reason besides there being fewer and/or unfamiliar opportunities that they aren't living in the Upper Middle Class at least. So, they listen to Rush and Hannity and believe that their problems are all due to a wholesale transfer of wealth from people like them to lazy, shiftless, liberal poor people, like in New Orleans.

We are entering an age where you are going to have to be significantly "above average" to make a living. The problem is that most people are going to be average, that's the definition of average you know. We have made this a winner take all society and we just have no time for losers when in fact the vast majority of us are indeed losing....

[Double T]

6. America is regressing in every social, racial, environmental and economic.

area. The bush administration and his republican cronies has undone decades of progress in a mere four and a half years.

[zbdent]

7. That's protected Freedom of Speech

as long as it's not against the war . . . :sarcasm:

[malta blue]

8. I heard that too

and was intrigued by the concept of "lit crosses" as opposed to "burning crosses". "Lit" crosses are considered free speech!

[Greyhound]

9. KKK was started in IN. White people have always been afraid of

well, pretty much everything, but especially black people.

[CitrusLib]

10. Racism knows no state boundaries.

As a southerner who has lived, worked or travelled in just about every corner of this great country (minus Alaska and Hawaii), I can tell you racism is everywhere. It takes on various forms in different locations, but hate is hate and ignorance is ignorance. There are narrow-minded bigots in all 50.

But there are beautiful, loving, soulful people in all 50 as well. God bless those working to eradicate hate.

[goodhue]

11. Michigan has plenty of hate groups (63 in 2001)

http://www.ucc.org/jwm/wfj010702.htm

The Center for New Community is a faith-based organization whose mission is to revitalize communities for genuine social, economic and political democracy. Its Building Democracy Initiative helps the Center do this by tracking hate groups in the Midwest. In its 2001 report, State of Hate, it listed 338 such groups throughout Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio and Wisconsin, with Ohio leading the list with 73 such groups and Michigan coming in second with 63.

[JNelson6563]

12. I can tell you the north is VERY racist

The only possible upside is that they aren't going to like Keith Butler. Not at all.

Julie