At least two signs on County Road 7 in Grand Marais and one on the Gunflint Trail were targeted with black spray paint sometime during the night of October 20. Photo by Bryan Hansel ~ www.bryanhansel.com
During nearly every election season there is a feud of sorts over signs. Political signs for county, state and federal candidates pop up on people’s driveways and along road rights of way—and are promptly knocked down or carried off. Signs are replaced, letters are written to the newspaper and calls are made to Cook County Law Enforcement reporting the annoying mischief. However, this year the campaign against campaign signs took an ugly turn. Sometime during the night of Saturday, October 20, someone took a can of black spray paint and defaced several Obama signs, marking them with three capital letters—KKK—the symbol of the Ku Klux Klan.
The individual responsible for the hateful message would possibly be surprised at the vehement response to his or her handiwork. The Cook County News-Herald has been inundated with phone calls and e-mails reporting the incident and asking that this matter receive the attention it deserves.
One of those callers is the owner of a damaged sign. Her 2 ½-foot by 3-foot hand painted sign supporting President Barack Obama was at the end of her driveway. She had saved the sign from 2008 and put it up last week “for the fun of it.”
She was shocked when concerned neighbors began calling to make sure she was all right. She was very disappointed to see the damage to the sign but said she is not taking it down. She wants to leave it up so everyone can see the deliberate and angry message left by someone in the community.
Some callers were sickened at seeing a symbol of hatred in this close-knit community. Others were disturbed but felt the vandalism was likely done by someone too young to remember the history of the Ku Klux Klan. Whoever did it, community members hope they will be found out and face legal consequences for their action. Anyone who has information about the vandalism is encouraged to call Cook County Law Enforcement at (218) 387-3030.
For anyone who have forgotten the criminal/terrorist history of the KKK, we offer this brief list of some of heinous activity the group has been involved with:
. 1957 Klansmen force Willie Edwards Jr.
to jump to his death from a bridge on the
Alabama River.
. 1963 Assassination of NAACP organizer
Medger Evans in Mississsippi.
. 1963 Bombing of 16th Street Baptist
Church in Birmingham, AL, killing four
young African-American girls.
. 1964 Murder of three civil rights workers
in Mississsippi.
. 1964 Murder of two black teenagers
in Mississippi.
. 1965 Murder of Detroit mother of
five children visiting Alabama to attend
a civil rights march.
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