Sadly, the blacks in Toledo reacted exactly how the Neo-Nazis wanted to - with violence and self-destructive behavior.
The National Socialist Movement had asked the city for permission to march on public property and had gathered at a city park to march under police protection. They stated that they were demonstrating against black gangs they said were harassing white residents.
The violence broke out along the planned march route before the march even began. About 150 police officers chased bands of young black men through the area. At one point, the crowd reached 600 people.
Why, in this day and age, would civilized people feel compelled to destroy their own neighborhoods and property when reacting to a group that doesn't deserve to even be noticed? One black resident, criticized city officials for allowing the march in the first place.
"They let them come here and expect this not to happen?"Well, yeah, I wouldn't expect that to happen just because a bunch racists were marching in my town! That didn't happen in Washington this weekend when racist Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan told tens of thousands of followers yesterday that black people should unite and file a class action lawsuit for the "criminal neglect" perpetrated by the U.S. government against blacks during the Hurricane Katrina disaster.
Farrakhan urged people of color in America to form their own quasi-governmental ministries to see that their needs are addressed, and reiterated his call for slavery reparations to make amends for the U.S.'s "wickedness."
He said African-Americans shouldn't pay taxes unless they're treated more justly by the government, explaining:
"If you're going to take our tax dollars then we demand of you the same justice that you give white people. We demand it, we deserve it - or we shut it down."Gee, I feel like burning my neighbor's house down now, don't you? Maybe I'll turn over a car or something.
Am I offended by the racial statements that Farrakhan makes? You betcha. Do I feel like I need to react violently because of his simple-minded words? NO. Farrakhan's just as racist as the Neo-Nazis, in fact, it would be hard to tell the Nation of Islam apart from the Neo-Nazis when it comes to anti-Semitism. Racism is racism no matter who the perpetrator is and to whom it is directed.
Why then, is the response to racism so drastically and tragically different in the black and white communities? Why are whites ridiculously silent while blacks feel compelled to burn down their neighborhoods?
Whites ignoring racist comments directed at them by blacks hasn't made racism go away, so why do whites continue ignoring it? Blacks cutting their own throats by vandalizing, looting, burning, and destroying their communities hasn't made racism go away either, so why do it?
I don't have an answer for this. It's as puzzling to me as blacks abhorring the word "nigger" and yet call they call each other "nigger." It makes no sense. We are a nation of irreconcilable differences, differences that perpetuate themselves.
We have to come to the realization that racism against anyone is bad. Blacks making racist remarks about whites is no worse nor better than whites making racist remarks about blacks. The word "nigger" is either an epithet all the time or it is not at all. We can't have it both ways.
We as people, white and black, have got to get to the point that when blatantly racist groups assemble publicly, we don't react. The Neo-Nazis and the Farrakhans of the world will eventually shrivel up and blow away because the best way for them to spread their hatred is for them to get noticed. And if we don't react and we don't create the media circus they so desire, their hateful messages won't be heard.
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