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The Race Relations Reporter is a weekly electronic bulletin of news, surveys, and a chronicle of race-related incidents of discrimination, hate crimes, and hate group activity from across the United States. This bulletin is sent to subscribers each week at their personal e-mail account address. Subscriptions are $24 for 52 weekly issues. See sample, below: THE RACE RELATIONS REPORTER * QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “We don’t like the swastikas. We don’t like the negativity. The majority of people see all that as pure evil.” — Jonathan Williams, former member of Aryan Nations, announcing that his new white supremacist United Church of YHWH, headquartered in Talladega, Alabama, would abandon all Nazi symbolism ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ * NEW SURVEY FINDS THAT MANY BLACK VOTERS DON’T THINK OBAMA CAN WIN THE GENERAL ELECTION AND, AS A RESULT, THEY ARE BACKING HILLARY CLINTON: A new poll conducted by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies in Washington finds widespread support among black voters for both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. But the poll results show that many black voters do not believe that a black candidate could win the general election. Therefore, a majority of black voters, according to the poll, are backing the Clinton candidacy. * NEW BOOK ARGUES DENMARK VESEY WAS FRAMED FOR CONSPIRING TO START A SLAVE REVOLT: In 1822 Denmark Vesey was accused of plotting a slave rebellion in Charleston, South Carolina. He was hanged along with 34 other black conspirators. * HATE CRIMES RISE SHARPLY IN NEW YORK CITY: The New York City Police Department reports that hate crimes in the city have spiked 25 percent during 2007. The large increase in hate crimes has occurred mostly in the last quarter of the year. Hate crimes against Jews and African Americans have both increased. The department has investigated 16 instances where nooses have been displayed after the highly publicized incident at Columbia University where a noose was hung on the office door of an African-American professor. * RACISM WIDESPREAD IN THE NATION’S HIGH SCHOOLS: New data from the U.S. Department of Education finds that 15 percent of all black high school students in 2005 were subjected to racist hate speech while at school. Ten percent of white high school students reported that they had been subjected to hate-filled speech. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ * BANGOR, MAINE: The local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in Bangor, Maine, canceled its Kwanzaa celebration after it received threats that participants would be shot. A 75-year-old white man was accused of saying he would “shoot any and all black persons that he saw attending” the celebration. The man, who owns a gun, also said that “Maine should be a white state.” (Portland Press Herald, 11-28-07) * DUBUQUE, IOWA: The words “White Power” were found written on a van belonging to an inn in Dubuque, Iowa. Similar white power graffiti was found at several other locations throughout the city. (Dubuque Telegraph Herald,11-30-07) * WILKES-BARRE, PENNSYLVANIA: A group of about 30 African-American students marching in a Christmas parade in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, said they were subjected to racial slurs from bystanders and one city police officer. Two students said the police officer used the word “niggers.” (Wilkes-Barre Times Leader, 11-30-07) * SOUTHINGTON, CONNECTICUT: Racial graffiti was spray-painted on the sides of the football stadium at the high school in Southington, Connecticut. The graffiti, which included racial slurs and the letters “KKK,” also was sprayed on the field, the bleachers, the press box, and the running track. (New Haven Register, 11-30-07) * COUNCIL BLUFFS, IOWA: A noose was hung in the office of an African-American sergeant in the U.S. Army Reserve in Council Bluffs, Iowa. The black sergeant claims that the noose was put in her office by her superior officer. (Omaha World-Herald, 12-1-07) * PEARL RIVER, NEW YORK: Seven current or former employees of Wyeth Pharmaceuticals in Pearl River, New York, have filed a race discrimination lawsuit. The group alleges that they were denied promotions and steered into less desirable positions because of their race. They also say that they were subjected to humiliating racist comments while at work. One employee said he was taunted by a coworker who made fun of Aunt Jemima. A white supervisor told one black employee that she was the “head nigger in charge.” Another black employee said she was accused by a superior of practicing voodoo. Some of the black men allege that their supervisor referred to them as “boy.” (Westchester Journal News, 12-2-07) * MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA: Five African-American police officers in Minneapolis, Minnesota, have filed a race discrimination lawsuit against the police chief and the city. The suit alleges that the officers were passed over for promotions because of their race. The suit says that within his first 11 months on the job the new chief fired, demoted, or transferred every black male captain or inspector. The black officers claim that when he was a teenager, the current police chief placed racist hate literature in the lockers of black students at a local high school. (St. Paul Pioneer Press, 12-4-07) * KENT ISLAND, MARYLAND: A white student at a high school in Kent Island, Maryland, was accused of threatening a black classmate with a noose. According to police, the white student made a noose and hung it on a classroom door and asked the black student, “Do you wanna try this on?” (Baltimore Sun, 12-4-07) * CALIFORNIA, PENNSYLVANIA: A black employee of California University of Pennsylvania claims that white coworkers threatened his life and taunted him by wearing a white sheet which resembled a KKK costume. The black worker says that when he complained the university administration did nothing to discipline the white workers. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 12-6-07) * BALTIMORE, MARYLAND: A white couple was severely beaten on a city bus in Baltimore, Maryland. Nine black juveniles were charged in the case. Police believe that the beating may have been motivated by racial hate. (Baltimore Sun, 12-7-07) * TRACKING HATE CRIMES: For week December 2-8, the term “hate crime” appeared in the nation’s major newspapers and magazines 391 times. This is more than the 301 mentions of the term in the prior week. To contact The Race Relations Reporter, e-mail us at RRR@jbhe.com or call (212) 399-1084. © 2007 The Race Relations Reporter Past Race Relations Reporter
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