The Sikh Times - News and Analysis - K.K.K.: Alive and Well In North Carolina

THE SIKH TIMES
sikhtimes.com

Noteworthy News and Analysis from Around the World

In-Depth Coverage of Issues Concerning the Global Sikh Community Including Self-Determination, Democracy, Human Rights, Civil Liberties, Antiracism, Religion, and South Asian Geopolitics

K.K.K.: Alive and Well In North Carolina

By STAFF

W.S.O.C. T.V., Charlotte, North Carolina, Aug. 6, 2003

When Barbara Brumfield looked out her window this week, she thought she saw the worst. 'It looked malicious, teenage, they didn't have anything better to do stuff,' Brumfield said. 'They were lighting stuff in the street and setting fires,' she added. When she got a closer look at the road, she saw writings that included the letters K.K.K. [an abbreviation that stands for the Ku Klux Klan, a white supremacist organization].

The incident happened off Park Road in front of a house where a black woman lives. The woman believes she was the target of the message. Most people who live up and down the street believe kids were to blame for the latest incident, not just the writings, but other recent crimes like car break-ins. Heather Reeder's lived in the south Charlotte neighborhood for five years and said she's worried. She feels moving is the only way to feel safe. 'It used to be a really nice neighborhood. You wouldn't hear of anything here. Now it's one thing after another,' Reeder said.

Police say they aren't sure who did this, but are investigating it as a hate crime. 'It scares me, it really does,' Brumfield said. The woman who feels targeted said she's experienced other crimes in the past like vandalism and hopes the latest incident helps police get results.