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CSUSB professor says avoiding discussion of apparent racist vandalism is not helpful to solving the problemDenver PostMay 29, 2018
A rope tied around the neck of a sculpture of a female figure titled African Queen has stirred hard feelings in the mountain town of Evergreen, Colo., after a picture of the vandalism was posted on social media and reported to the sheriff. The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office is not calling it a hate crime, but the woman who reported it was offended by racial implications.
The situation is representative of the current climate in the United States, said Brian Levin, director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University at San Bernardino.
Race relations are at their lowest point since the 1992 Los Angeles riots, which were triggered by the acquittal of four white police officers who had beaten Rodney King, a black man, Levin said.
Hateful incidents can be hard to address and are embarrassing for communities.
“We’re very divided and we’re very entrenched in our divisions,” he said.
But avoiding the issue is not helpful, he said. Neither is an attempt to dismiss the whole thing as a prank.
“People who aren’t familiar with the history of lynchings are just oblivious,” Levin said.
Read the complete article at “A noose or not? A rope tied around an African figure sculpture has divided Evergreen residents.”
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