AHEPA Condemns Publisher's Call for KKK to "Night Ride Again"

WASHINGTON, DC - Press release dated Feb. 20, 2019 - Supreme President George E. Loucas has issued the following statement: 

"We are alarmed by an editorial published in the Democrat-Reporter, an Alabama small-town newspaper, that opened, 'Time for the Ku Klux Klan to night ride again.'

"The KKK terrorized immigrants and minorities, including Americans of Hellenic heritage, during its resurgence in the early 20th century.  The KKK's intimidating and sometimes violent discrimination toward Greek immigrants led to the founding of our Order in 1922 in Atlanta--the home of the KKK's headquarters at the time.

"Therefore, any call for the KKK to 'night ride again'--no matter where it is published or the volume of the media outlet's circulation or distribution--must be condemned.

"We appreciate U.S. Senator Doug Jones and U.S. Congresswoman Terri Sewell for speaking out against the editorial.

"We call for the author of the editorial, Mr. Goodloe Sutton, who is the publisher and editor of the Democrat-Reporter, to resign."

Earlier this week, Mr. Sutton confirmed to the Montgomery Advertiser that he did author the editorial, which was published unsigned.

Background

The Order of AHEPA was founded in 1922 in Atlanta, Georgia, on the principles that undergirded its fight for civil rights and against discrimination, bigotry, and hatred felt at the hands of the Ku Klux Klan.

In 1990, AHEPA filed an amicus curiae (friend of the court) brief in the Georgia Supreme Court. It backed the legal position of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) of B'nai B'rith in support of a state law banning masks in public which was challenged by the KKK. The court ruled 6 to 1 to uphold the constitutionality of the anti-mask statute.

 

For more info on this subject, go to: https://www.pappaspost.com/forgotten-history-the-klan-vs-americans-of-greek-heritage-in-an-era-of-hate-and-the-birth-of-the-ahepa/

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AHEPA is the largest and oldest grassroots association of American citizens of Greek heritage and Philhellenes with more than 400 chapters across the United States, Canada, and Europe. 

Uptick in white terrorism indicative of old supremacist ideology

OPINION:  A few months ago, I had to control myself when an older white man purposely and with anger banged into my shopping cart in the grocery store for no apparent reason. My impression was that he was trying to provoke me into a violent altercation. Knowing that there were cameras recording things in the store, I called him out as evil, and he retreated down the aisle.

A few years back at a church function, a white congregant said, "Fuck you," while we were both working as volunteers. When she apologized after I informed the church council of her actions, she told me she had taken medication and didn't remember what she said.

Ten years ago, I was waiting in line when a white woman broke in front of me.  When I called her out, she mentioned, "survival of the fittest" and went to another checkout lane.

All these incidents stuck in my mind as attributed to deep rooted anger/hate probably coupled with pain killers and attempts to cause a stir, perhaps leading to dire consequences for me. I'm glad I kept my cool...

Now I'm confronted with two news items: 

1) a report from the Southern Poverty Law Center that there has been "a 30 percent increase in U.S. hate groups over the past four years and a 7 percent increase in hate groups in 2018 alone, according to the center's annual 'Year in Hate and Extremism' report. The group designated 1,020 organizations as hate groups in 2018, a high of at least 20 years." (https://www.npr.org/2019/02/20/696217158/u-s-hate-groups-rose-sharply-in-recent-years-watchdog-group-reports)

2) a U.S. Coast Guard employee, Christopher Paul Hasson, who is also a self-described white nationalist, was arrested in Maryland last week for plotting mass killings (https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/20/us/christopher-hasson-coast-guard.html)

“If you don't understand white supremacy/racism, everything that you do understand will only confuse you.”

― Neely Fuller, Jr., The United Independent Compensatory Code System Concept a textbook/workbook for Thought, Speech and/or Action for Victims of Racism

Racist ideologies are not new and have been documented in conservative journals. In the May 1995 Edition of Georgia Trend Magazine which featured Newspaper Publisher Otis Brumby on the cover, an opinion piece was printed on page 78 written by Virgil R. Williams, a supposedly noble communicator. 

 

In this article, Williams states in the first paragraph, "A phenomenon is occurring in the lives of the white American male. He is rapidly losing his once esteemed position in American society. Beneath the surface, he is seething with anger. The three characteristics that describe him - white, American and male - are all under attack."

Virgil R. Williams is an entrepreneur, former executive and bank owner, and current CEO of the Williams Companies which provide services to engineering and oil/gas sites. Williams lives in Suwanee, GA in Gwinnett County on a massive estate, according to Globalglobetrotting. (https://virtualglobetrotting.com/map/virgil-r-williams-house/view/bing/).

 https://virtualglobetrotting.com/map/virgil-r-williams-house/view/bing/

Williams is also former director of Bank of America and former owner of the Georgia Force Arena Football team. I don't mind him having things, especially a nice house, but why is he saying white men are losing ground and must do something because of the plight they are in?

So what do folks like Williams, Hasson, and Trump have in common? 

*They appear angry, especially at people they deem lower than themselves.
*Reconciliation is not their priority.
*They fail to face reality: the world is run by whites who use racism/white supremacy/fear to suppress non-whites. 
*They don't respect white women or "other" races.
*They want it all, including death to those not like them and will even kill other whites who get in their way.

What do you think? What action should be applied?

Update: The Atlanta Business Chronicle reported in 2004 that Virgil R. Williams had $67m in bank stocks (792,048 shares) when he retired and also owned the Georgia Force Football Team which he later sold to Arthur Blank.

Recent: Alabama newspaper publisher says KKK should ride again: https://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/story/news/2019/02/21/goodloe-sutton-alabama-kkk-editorial-wont-back-down-ku-klux-klan-linden-alabama-racist-editor/2938252002/?fbclid=IwAR2r94FcAycPQdXY2M2w5rFqPMCCqeQoNJVogf0Lw-uBLXp6XDDyCtFj17A

Shaun Calhoun receives Costco President's Award for heroism

Shaun Calhoun (c) of Metro Louisville, Kentucky received the Costco President's Award for helping a child of one of the chain's members in need of life-saving medical attention. 

Including a heartfelt thanks, the award, and a President's badge,  Calhoun will receive 25 shares of Costco stock.

Calhoun, 35, is married with children. "He is a symbol of what it means to be a good Christian man," said his proud father, George "Bubba" Calhoun.

 Way to go, Shaun! It is reported that the stock he received is worth $5k.

GA Solar mixer brings politicians, policymakers, advocates, and installers together

The Georgia Solar Energy Association held a Connections Networking Mixer last night at the Warren City Club in Virginia Highlands in Atlanta. The event was sponsored by Enercon.

Barber and Ginn attended the function.

Public Service Commission (PSC) Representative Jamie Barber, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Manager, said the state has deregulated many industries, but solar is not one of them. According to its website, the PSC's mission is "to exercise its authority and influence to ensure that consumers receive safe, reliable and reasonably priced telecommunications, electric and natural gas services from financially viable and technically competent companies." One important question is, “Why hasn’t solar been deregulated?”

According to Solar Power Rocks (https://www.solarpowerrocks.com/georgia/), Georgia has an F policy grade in 2019 because of low tax credits. Solar installation tax incentives have soured since 2008 and have not rebounded, even with the passage of the solar Power-Free Market Financing Act of 2015.

When asked would he recommended putting solar panels on the State Capitol, Georgia State Senator Frank Ginn  (R) - 47th District, said he would not recommend putting them on the Gold Dome because it’s the wrong application for an historic, 1879 building, but he has solar on his own residence. 

"I've been in the solar industry since the '70's and actually live in a passive home," Ginn said in my interview. "Most all of the energy we have on the planet, accept for nuclear, came originally from solar.  Whether we're talking about coal, or natural gas, bio-mass, or active solar, it all came from the sun. "

"I do serve on the World Congress Center Oversight Committee, and we've done some things there on parking decks. It's a great application that can be done in urban areas because you're not only producing energy, but you're giving some protection to the automobiles against the heat of the sun," Ginn said.

Ginn also said people need to understand that solar applications are more than just panels on house rooftops but include industrial and major building uses. He said the new Mercedes-Benz Stadium, famous for its retractable roof, utilizes solar technology. 

       Young said the sun's power can be harnessed and utilized wherever you are.                   
 (Photo credit: Don Tonic, President/GM and Certified PV Installation Professional)

Thatcher Young, VP of Business Development of VeloSolar, says there are a myriad of ways solar is integrated into customer applications, including solar lighting, portable solar electronic charging, and a whole host of off-grid applications, i.e. tiny homes, campers, etc. which harness electricity naturally available from an unlimited source - the sun.

“Solar energy can be used while you’re hiking, camping or lounging on your own private island,” Young said.

Kurk Johnson and George Lovelace, both IT professionals originally from Kentucky, shared a toast at mixer.

For more information on this organization, go to: https://www.gasolar.org/

University of Alabama history lesson

Correction: Foster Auditorium was not named after Lucy but after Richard Clark Foster in 1939.

Today marks the day University of Alabama Student Autherine Lucy (Foster) was suspended from attending classes, three days after she entered the Department of Education through a side corridor. I visited the place where a courageous Lucy, who wanted to become a teacher, tried to be the first person of color to attend “Bama” despite white protests two years after the Brown desegregation case was announced by the U.S. Supreme Court.

These were the steps leading to Education Building where Lucy was escorted away from protesters.

Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Buford Boone of TheTuscaloosa  News described the incident in this editorial:

These are bulletin boards on the walls in the corridor today.

The pictures speak for themselves. Know History. 

The place where Gov. George Wallace stood in the schoolhouse door is Foster Auditorium where young women now practice volleyball and basketball.

It took Lucy 35 years to be awarded her Masters from Univ. of Alabama, but she did it!