White supremacists + law enforcement + Donald Trump = our vote finally matters | Mickey Z.

The Klan Backs Trump. By Mike Licht. Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

Mickey Z. -- World News Trust

Aug. 5, 2016

“Some of those that work forces, are the same that burn crosses.” (Rage Against The Machine)

In October 2006, the FBI issued a warning that “White supremacist infiltration of law enforcement” represented a significant national threat. Multiple incidents (far too many to list here) had prompted the report, e.g.

• A federal court found that members of a Los Angeles sheriffs department formed a Neo Nazi gang and habitually terrorized the black community. 
• The Chicago police department fired Jon Burge, a detective with reputed ties to the Ku Klux Klan, after discovering he tortured more than 100 black male suspects. 
• The Mayor of Cleveland discovered that many of the city police locker rooms were infested with “White Power” graffiti. 
• A Texas sheriff department discovered that two of its deputies were recruiters for the Klan.

To make matters worse, this racist, paramilitary force is commonly “prepared” for the streets in sessions like this:

(For example, Jeronimo Yanez, the Minnesota police officer who killed Philando Castile, was trained in such a class.)

Meanwhile, from 2008 to 2014, the overall number of known white supremacist groups in the United States rose from 149 to nearly a thousand. Their infiltration of law enforcement continues, unchecked and virtually undiscussed.

“Some of those that burn crosses, are the same that hold office.” (RATM)

Running parallel to the above trends is the rise of Donald J. Trump, a known racist who has met with powerful white supremacists and earned their support. Trump’s campaign has already emboldened covert racists and overt misogynists and required the creation of a Trump Hate Map. 

Regardless of what we each believe or desire as individuals, either Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump is going to be elected U.S. president this November. Yes, this reality is ugly to accept but it does signal that our vote finally matters in a U.S. presidential election. The choice is real: Obama’s third term or Mussolini’s second. Which side are you on?

Mickey Z. is currently writing his fourteenth book, How to Lose Friends & Influence Nobody: My Life as an “Activist.” In the meantime, he can be found here.