The KKK In Ellijay

How sad it is that even in 2010, there are those who still feel the best way to effect progress or perhaps fight it is through ignorant hatred. Last Saturday my friend Wes and I trekked south to Ellijay, GA to observe a Ku Klux Klan rally. It was encouraging to find only a modest crowd in attendance with nearly half of it holding signs decrying all things the KKK stands for. Armed with my video camera, I snaked my way through both sides of the crowd. Fittingly enough, those to the left in the crowd were the people hoisting signs that all men are equal my favorite that read, “Only laundry should be separated by color”. Best I could tell most of the protesters were from a Unitarian church in the area. One man in jeans and a t-shirt milled about the entire crowd with his Bible raised protesting the KKK. For some reason, I could tell he was not part of the same group and I would later learn I was right.

Those without signs seemed to be a most fickle and confounded lot. I saw one lady standing atop her truck flashing peace signs, only to see her clapping at the KKK’s ignorant rhetoric a few minutes later. She was not the only one exhibiting such strange behavior. One lady casting insults at the speaker began having words with a KKK supporter in the crowd. A man nearby looked at her and said, “I’m with you” only to applaud the same speaker moments later. Wes saw this same phenomenon a few times himself as he walked through the crowd. Of course there were those one would have no doubt about. One old lady yelled in agreement with all things said. Some were there adorned in their rebel flag t-shirts and caps. One vehement supporter was wearing FUBU shoes which I found comical.

The actual KKK members were protected by at least 50 yards of open space and lined on all sides with law enforcement officers. I guess we can consider that progress to some degree as they once could safely parade up and down city streets adorned in their white sheets. Today they must be “protected” so they can spew their venom. Little was said about black people during the time I was there. The target of the KKK on this day were Latinos, (referenced under the blanket term ‘Mexicans’ during the rally), homosexuals, sex offenders, gun control and the Obama Administration’s “communist” policies.

Regarding Latinos, they attacked the drug resistant strain of tuberculosis that has entered the country through illegal immigration as well as the presence of illegal immigrants. Supposedly they are costing this country a fortune as they drive without car insurance. Of course we know this is limited only to the immigrant community (end sarcasm here). Also, they cited FBI statistics regarding the crime rates related to Latino immigrants. I chuckled, as the very same government they were railing against and that could not be trusted is the same one they drew statistics from. Ignorance continued to abound as they said all homosexuals would die from AIDs and they didn’t like being at risk of catching the disease should they be near a homosexual who sneezes. It was not long before a man dressed in blue KKK robes took the podium and read aloud ‘all’ the Gilmer County sex offenders to include their addresses. He assured those in the crowd if they didn’t like sex offenders living near them, the KKK would help them take care of that. Before leaving for the day, we listened to the KKK rail against gun control. This was the only topic in which I agreed with these idiots. Agreeing with anything they said was scary in itself. They gave examples worldwide of places that enacted gun control and saw crime rates increase thereafter, if not all out genocide. I was surprised that they referenced Nazi gun control that saw the Holocaust follow. Most white supremacists I have met deny the Holocaust ever occurred. I guess much like the FBI statistics, convenient references were used to support the rhetoric of hate.

From the crowd came many cheers, jeers and harsh words. If the crowd was especially riled up, the speaker would take a break so he and his cronies could chant “White Power!” Boos and cheers from the crowd would quickly follow. At one point, one of the protesters yelled “God loves everybody!” The lead speaker replied, “God may love people of all color, but I don’t have to!” For a man espousing Christian values, this was hypocrisy at its finest. After an hour or so, the heat of the day was bearing down on Wes and I we began our trek back to Chattanooga. We’d heard enough ignorance for one day.

As we returned, we stopped at a gas station in Ellijay for some Gatorade. There I saw the man who had his Bible raised earlier and walked through the crowd. I asked him what church he was from and he told me the name (which I forget now) and that the church was Southern Baptist. This was quite surprising as such a conservative denomination (of which I was once a part) does not typically make protests unless it is a direct attack on Christianity (i.e. movies, music, etc). This man was there on his own and not part of a group, best I could tell, and I respected him for doing that. He shared with me that he does feel many of the things the KKK was speaking against that day are indeed problems with this country, but their way of trying to enact change is not the right way to go about it.

Noticeably absent from this rally were people of other races. There were no Latinos or blacks there to protest. In the past I have known those of other races to attend such rallies and I was surprised to see none of them there that day. At one point I heard somebody in the crowd say, “My dad just got a text that the black panthers are on their way.” They did not show up while Wes and I were there and I seriously doubt they arrived any later. It is sad that racial hate groups still exist today and that one could even hold such a rally at a county courthouse. It was refreshing however that on this day, the crowd was so small and such ignorant fools had to be kept so far away from the crowd and be protected by law enforcement. I would like to think this is evidence of how more people disagree with the KKK than those who do.