From the HERE City National Desk
EL PASO, Texas — Police in El Paso are trying to determine whether laws were broken after videos spread online showing a group dressed in white hoods and robes like those of the Ku Klux Klan walking down a residential street in the city.
The El Paso Police Department said the group may include young people and that the videos appear to show them yelling racial slurs. Chief Peter Pacillas said investigators are examining possible disorderly conduct and other offenses, and he asked anyone who knows about the incident to contact the department.
In a written statement, the chief said Klan imagery stands for a legacy of racial terror and violence, and that dressing up in it as a costume or a prank goes against the community’s values. He added that free speech does not cover conduct that threatens public order or other people’s safety.
The local branch of the NAACP held a news conference Monday morning to condemn the display. Branch president Carl B. Dwyer Jr. said it caused deep pain for Black Americans, for whom the Klan has been a source of real violence since the Civil War, and he called on area superintendents and school districts to speak up and teach students the history behind the symbols.
Supporters at the event joined in singing Lift Every Voice and Sing, widely known as the Black national anthem.
The police department also urged parents and families to talk with young people about why hatred and intimidation are not welcome in El Paso. No arrests had been announced as of Monday.
Section: More Washington DC crime news
Filed under: Washington DC Public Safety News
