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Loyal readers of IVC's scintillating Crime Blotter will have noticed twin entries last week:
October 15, 1345 hours: Campus police responded to the B200 building men's restroom in reference to a report of graffiti in the bathroom (two swastika's drawn on the stall door). Investigation is ongoing.
October 17, 1330 hours: Maintenance worker made a late report of graffiti found in men's restroom in the A200 building. Graffiti described as two swastika's written on bathroom stall wall. Investigation is ongoing.The appearance of the Nazi party symbols should not surprise people who have been paying attention of a series of acts of aggression on campus though it is difficult to pay attention when the college lacks any reliable conduit of communication beyond the cheerful avalanche of emails that await us all. Though, for be fair, news of the swastikas or vandalized fliers or (add your outrage here) would be a challenge to incorporate into a cheerful email.
In August, PBS' Frontline along with ProPublica released Documenting Hate: Charlottesville, an investigation into the 2017 Unite the Right rally. It doesn't take long to the film to move from Virginia to Orange County, to recent events in Anaheim and Huntington Beach - then to to Irvine. Click the link above at 22:53 minute mark and you'll see footage that looks awfully familiar.
In these excerpts, reporter A.C. Thompson talks with Chapman university professor Peter Simi as they visit training areas, both of them quite close to IVC and Saddleback:
A.C. THOMPSON:
Using clues from RAM’s [Rise Above Movement] propaganda videos, I manage to locate one of their training spots. Just off the 405 outside of Irvine, we find RAM’s graffiti tags hidden inside drainage tunnels....Sociologist Pete Simi has studied white supremacists for decades. His field research takes him inside dozens of racist groups across the country...what do you make of this?
PETE SIMI: You’ve got the Celtic cross. It’s one of the most widely utilized tattoos among white supremacists. And then it’s interesting because you get then this phrase here – “kill your local drug dealer” – which taps into what’s right above the, the straight edge, the three X, triple Xs, this notion of living a clean life and being very kind of puritanical almost.
A.C. THOMPSON: Right.
PETE SIMI: They felt like they were doing like a vigilante-type work. They were cleaning up the streets.
A.C. THOMPSON: Like the white supremacists who came before them, Simi says that RAM members present themselves as defenders of traditional white culture. We visit Marblehead Park in San Clemente where they film training videos that celebrate personal fitness, the warrior spirit and political street fighting.
PETE SIMI: What they're trying to sell is this idea that we need to go back to a, a more traditional time, you know, traditional masculinity. When they blend in these fight scenes, that's also this idea of being not only just fit and living a pure life, but also being a warrior of sorts. And so you could imagine a, you know, 16-, 17-year-old white male watching these videos and being somewhat moved by them or attracted to them in some case.
A.C. THOMPSON: It looks like it's a small group, it's a fringe group. Why are they important? And, and what do you think?
PETE SIMI: Well, first you, know, the first thing is we just want to strictly talk about violence. Small groups can do as much if not more destruction than large groups. You have, for instance, the Oklahoma City bombing. Relatively small group there that, you know, ultimately pulled off, at the time, the largest act of domestic terrorism prior to 9/11. So, so you know, an, an act of violence can certainly be committed by a small fringe group.
A.C. THOMPSON: By a small group.
PETE SIMI: And then I think, yeah, they might be kind of a small fringe group but the best, most sophisticated white supremacist is the, the one who appears the least visible. They're not out there wearing uniforms that are going to be really visible. They're not getting tattoos all over their face. You know, they're, they're blending in in a lot of different ways, including the issues they're concerned about. The issue of immigration, which has been a real hot-button issue – white supremacists can seize on that issue and say look, there's an invasion and America’s under siege. Then they have the potential to recruit among a much broader swath of the population than we often are willing to admit or recognize.So yeah. They're here. "Emboldened" is the word people are using. The neo-Nazis and white supremacists among us are emboldened. They are emboldened by a president in the White House who proudly calls himself a nationalist.
And they are emboldened by his supporters who cheer.
And they are emboldened by silence in the face of swastikas.
An official silence that runs deep.
Shame.
- Our tenuous "connection" to the (alleged) National Holocaust Museum shooter (DtB, 6-11-09)
- HANGIN' WITH BIGWIG REPUBLICANS WHILE NAZIS HIDE IN BUSHES by Chunk (From Dissent 9, 9-28-98)
- A MOTLEY CREW OF NAZIS VS. JDL THUGS: OH, WHAT A NIGHT! by Chunk Wheeler (Dissent, 6-21-98)
- FROGUE'S "SCHOLAR" HINTS AT VIOLENCE (From Dissent 4, 3-27-98)
- NIGHT OF THE NAZI by Chunk Wheeler (1-20-98)
- TO CONCERNED UNIONISTS: FROGUE DEFENDS HIMSELF AGAINST THE CHARGE THAT HE IS A HOLOCAUST DENIER (Frogue defends himself against charges, 10-6-96)
- IS TRUSTEE STEVEN FROGUE A HOLOCAUST DENIER? (Dissent, 3-23-95)
11 comments:
Once again the silence is deafening. What has to happen before any of them say or do anything?
https://thetab.com/us/2016/12/05/swastikas-are-appearing-at-colleges-across-america-but-should-we-be-worried-56037
Usually the college president or school principal says SOMETHING.
https://news.stanford.edu/2017/10/25/police-investigating-appearance-swastika-campus-building/
https://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/University-of-Miami-Investigating-Swastikas-Found-Drawn-Inside-Dorms-on-Campus-479893443.html
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/education/bs-md-school-hate-vandalism-20180907-story.html
https://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2018/10/08/sacramento-city-college-swastikas/
Do the trustees know about the appearance of the swastikas - especially in light of other incidents? Has someone contacted the Lariat? The LA Times, the Register? OC Human Relations Commission?
This is not the time to be silent.
We should write to the trustees and we should tell the media.
Silence is condoning these actions.
Because nobody cares. Including your colleagues and coworkers! Everyone here stomps their feet and cries for change. But, when it’s time to step up, nobody does. That’s why corruption runs so rampant. Because they can with zero checks, repercussions, or accountability. If you do nothing, you DESERVE what happens! I’m glad I left that toxic, ugly institution. Good riddance!
Anon, people care - you yourself know that. But not enough for sure. And it isn't a completely toxic place: we do good work with good students. But we could be better. Starting with public condemnations of swastikas.
I am sure Glenn and Diane are laboring over a statement which will arrive later rather than sooner in our email boxes.
People need to email the board and the chancellor:
Trustees:
Tim Jemal tjemal@socccd.edu
Marcia Milchiker mmilchiker@socccd.edu
TJ Prendergast tprendergast@socccd.edu
David Lang dlang@socccd.edu
James Wright jwright@socccd.edu
Barbara Jay bjay3@socccd.edu
Terri Whitt twhitt@socccd.edu
Chancellor Kathleen Burke chancellor@socccd.edu
Here's a sample letter student groups sent to GWU president which includes a troublesome timeline:
o: President Steven Knapp
March 4, 2015
Dr. Steven Knapp
President
2122 I Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20052
Dear President Knapp,
We are 19 Jewish and civil rights organizations representing hundred of thousands of supporters who are concerned for the safety and well-being of Jewish students on your campus.
As you know, during the last week in February three swastikas were drawn inside International House, a dorm housing sororities and fraternities, three of which are historically Jewish. We are troubled by the University’s response, and join Jewish student leaders on your campus who are calling for the University to better address incidents of campus antisemitism.
According to reports about the swastikas that appeared in The GW Hatchet and Washington Post, the University:
Did not formally acknowledge the swastikas until a meeting with students four days after the initial report was filed.
Did not take the issue seriously as students felt compelled to ask their parents to call the university on their behalf in order for the university to take action.
Referred to the swastikas as “offensive drawings” but did not publicly acknowledge that a swastika is an antisemitic symbol associated with genocide perpetrated against the Jewish people, and that it particularly targets members of the Jewish community for hatred and discrimination.
Is not investigating the incident as a hate crime.
May not have adequately trained security personnel to recognize antisemitism and hate crimes, and to appropriately respond to Jewish student concerns.
Jewish student leaders have called on the University to issue a formal apology for not addressing Jewish student concerns about the swastikas in a forthright manner, and asked that campus police officers be better trained in diversity and hate crimes.
We fully support the students’ requests, and we ask that in addition, you investigate this incident as a possible hate crime as defined in the George Washington University Crime Statistic Report Form, and issue a public statement condemning the swastikas, acknowledging their antisemitic nature and impact on Jewish students, and committing yourself and your administration to addressing similar incidents of anti-Jewish bigotry promptly and vigorously.
We hope that you will show your students, their parents, GWU alumni, and the larger community that George Washington University stands firmly against bigotry and hatred, including antisemitism, and will protect all members of the campus community.
We await your response and thank you for your leadership in protecting Jewish students.
Sincerely,
They will tell you that they don't want to "bring attention to the perpetrators" which is why they have been quiet, conducting an investigation that will likely lead nowhere. But they don't understand that this is NOT about the perpetrators - but it is about their targets. That's why you speak out against it - loud and publicly and quickly - so that the people targeted by this feel safe. Do the right thing, IVC.
None of them are Jewish. So they don't see a threat.
Damn that documentary is scary! This group is like white ISIS, attracting white men who feel disenfranchised somehow and growing its ranks. Of course Trump emboldens them, but the bigger question is, why are there so many young men who feel this way and attracted to this movement? Why are there less young men attending college (https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2017/08/why-men-are-the-new-college-minority/536103/) while living at mom's house, jerking off, playing video games, planning mass shootings, and doing nothing with their lives? Why is there so much hate - of people of color, women, and anyone who isn't a white male?
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