A West Boca man started a firestorm of controversy in his neighborhood and beyond by putting a Ku Klux Klan flag, noose and “members wanted” sign in his front yard.
Located
outside a mobile home along Sandalfoot Boulevard off of U.S. 441, the
display didn't sit well with some neighbors, who called it offensive and
upsetting. It's also been condemned by the Anti-Defamation League,
which called the flag and noose “highly offensive.”
Margaret Martin, who lives
across the street, said it goes beyond that — it scares her. She said
she grew up hearing stories from her family about violent encounters
with Klansmen.
“And now here I am, 58, and I'm actually seeing
it,” said Martin, who is black. “They experienced it, and now I'm seeing
it for myself.”
People who live in the house where the flag's on
display say it's not a symbol of hate and there's nothing to worry
about, adding that the noose was a “bad joke.”
“It's really not a
big deal,” Marla Curley told Sun Sentinel news partner CBS12. “Tell
them to stop worrying. The black lady can stop worrying. We're not going
to, you know, burn her house or kill her children … It's just not going
to happen.”
Late Wednesday, WSVN-Ch. 7 reported
that the flag had been taken down. Curley told the station that it would
be replaced with an American flag.
A second KKK flag accompanied
by a sign that says “Warning: Mess with the Klan and the results will
be ugly” stands outside a house a few blocks away.
The residents
there, who did not want to give their names, distanced themselves from
the other exhibit, saying that they're members of a faction of the KKK
that isn't racist or violent and stands just for preserving the white
race.
In a statement Wednesday, a representative with the
Anti-Defamation League acknowledged the right to display the KKK flag,
but said it condemned the flag and noose display because of the fearful
emotions it evokes.
“While the display is likely legal, these
symbols are highly offensive, hurtful and a haunting reminder of the Ku
Klux Klan's history of violence, terrorism, and lynchings of African
Americans,” said Hava Holzhauer, a director for the league's Florida
region.
Lucas Harris, another neighbor, said he thinks the flag's presence was “outrageous.”
“To me, they're very ignorant,” he said of the people behind the display. “I wasn't raised like that.”
Martin said she never thought she'd see a sign of the KKK in this day and age.
“I will pray for that man because he evidently believes what he's doing is OK,” she said.
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