Local Newspapers Cover Rising Number of Racist Anti-Obama Actions in Small Towns
By Dexter Hill
Published: November 12, 2008 5:30 PM ET
NEW YORK Many conservative pundits and Republican officeholders on the national stage have reacted to the election of Barack Obama as a promising step forward in the history of race relations and democracy in the U.S. But gaining much less coverage from the national media are local reactions that are far less accepting and positive.
Away from the spotlight, many local newspapers around the country have covered recent incidents of racially-motivated reactions to last week’s election, from flag hung upside down to the dangling of nooses and cross-burnings. As we noted last week, a couple in northern New Jersey who had an Obama sign on their front lawn woke up to find the charred remains of a cross out there. Local residents today announced a "unity march" to protest the still-unsolved incident.
Now come these fresh reports.
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Also in Michigan, in Midland, a man dressed in full Ku Klux Klan regalia walked around toting a handgun and waving an American flag. Initially denying it, the man eventually admitted to police that the display was a reaction to the Obama victory. “{The man} had a concealed weapon permit and was walking up and down the sidewalk in front of a vehicle dealership while some motorists shouted obscenities at him and others shouted accolades," police told The Saginaw News.
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