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A majority-Black town starts armed protection group after neo-Nazi rally (www.nbcnews.com)
submitted 2 years ago by to c/news@lemmy.world
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Summary

Following a February 7th neo-Nazi rally, residents of Lincoln Heights, a majority-Black Ohio town, formed an armed Safety and Watch Program to protect against hate groups.

The rally, where participants waved swastikas and shouted slurs, received little police intervention, sparking fears of future threats when no arrests or identifications were made during the incident.

Volunteers now patrol bus stops and neighborhoods. "I've never felt safer as a Black man in my community," said spokesperson Daronce Daniels.

The historically underserved and self-governing community shows strong support for the initiative with yard signs and sees this as a continuation of its legacy of self-reliance and community defense.

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A majority-Black town starts armed protection group after neo-Nazi rally (www.nbcnews.com)
submitted 2 years ago by [M] to c/usnews@beehaw.org
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Nearly every morning for the last month, Jay has been waking up before sunrise to drive around the streets of Lincoln Heights, patrolling neighborhood bus stops to make sure children are getting to school safely.

"We have a very tight community, so all of our kids, they know us," he said.

But for anyone outside the community, Jay's presence might be a mystery. He wears a face covering along with tactical vests, and Jay is not his real name, which he asked not to use to prevent harassment from hate groups.

He's a member of the Lincoln Heights Safety and Watch program, an initiative that started shortly after Feb. 7, when a neo-Nazi group waving swastika flags and shouting racial slurs demonstrated on a highway overpass just on the edge of this majority-Black community about 30 minutes north of Cincinnati.