[lbo-talk] As the urban battlefield grows...

Michael Hoover hooverm at scc-fl.edu
Sat Mar 4 18:16:15 PST 2006



>>> JBrown72073 at cs.com 02/28/06 12:17 PM >>>
When the Florida National Socialist Party rallied in Gainesville in 1990 for Hitler's birthday, the police chief told everyone to stay away. Happily, people ignored this advice (threat?) and outnumbered the lil' hitlers 30:1. A couple years later there was a Klan-Nazi doubleheader in Brooksville (north of Tampa, west of Orlando). In both cases, the cops acted to protect fascist freedom of speech. To achieve this end, they'd rather that energetic opposition not show up and hold counter-rallies or denounce Nazis and Klan to their face, hence the support of these 'diversion programs,' unity picnics, 'be cool' campaigns, and the like. Jenny Brown <<<<<>>>>>

in the early '80s, klan orgs in florida became more public than they'd been for some time (there's actually been a good bit written about klan's history in florida, check out stetson kennedy, david chalmers, jerrell shofner, michael newton), local kluxer here in orblando managed to get himself some news coverage, his 'chapter' anounced that it was holding a kind of open house on some privately-owned land, they issue public invite to interested parties, prospective members, the simply curious, to attend, eat some barbecue, and chat...

in response, some local folks decided to demonstrate at entrance to this property, only a small number turned out for klan event, only a small number turned out to protest the klan, deputy sheriffs assigned to the area stood guard at gate, in effect, facilitating entry of people going to the barbecue, my most vivid memory of situation was friend of mine - dope-smoking-cp & nra member-labor organizer who later morphed into right-wing nationalist and has since passed away - who upon arrival informed me that he had 'heat' in the trunk of his car...

there have been several public klan/nazi events over the years here, in each instance, their numbers have been overwhelmed (small group of neo-nazis outside jewish community center some years ago drew about 1500 in response)... mh



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