Words from the Philadelphia Weekly

Kia Gregory asks "Saturday's dueling rallies in Valley Forge Park were plenty loud, but was anyone really listening?"

I was, and I was 298 miles away.

The Fat Lady has sung

Well, I guess we'll be going through the after-action reports on the Valley Forge Social Justice Rally for months to come. I didn't make it, as I was serving on military duty, fulfilling my obligation as a reservist.

Here's two bits: First, here is a posting on an anti-facist site (One People's Project); I guess, depending on where you sat, the day was not all that peaceful. Looks like some people want to take the call to action and use their fists... Next, here are Phil's comments he made at the peaceful rally.

More to follow...

Twenty-four hours from now it'll all be over

And ain't that the truth. By this time tomorrow night, the neo-Nazis and the Klansmen will be winging their respective ways back to their caves, intent on figuring out how to successfully create hate in the United States. And, those who attended the social justice rally will be basking the glow created by peace and tolerance.

Ah, a little ying, a little yang.

Oh, I probably shouldn't talk about the ying and the yang; our lurking Nazis and KKK members probably don't understand it. Afterall, it's not a concept which is purely white in nature... ((Which, of course, brings me to a question: What is purely white in nature?))

Anyway, the fat lady sings in something like 18 hours. Let's all direct peaceful thoughts toward Valley Forge.

Those for peace & justice are "scraggly drug users and gutter punks"

More press on the Rally for Social Justice in the Pennsylvania press. This one from the Morning Call in the Lehigh Valley.

Said Jeff Schoep, commander of the National Socialist Movement, based in Minneapolis, Minn., and organizer of the rally:

There are people who will try and make trouble and create violence. We will defend ourselves if attacked … at least half our people are former military, and most of the opposition are scraggly drug users and gutter punks.

Let's see. Now we're scraggly drug users and gutter punks? I can do better than that. How about peace loving humanists... or tolerant individuals... or music loving folks of all races and creeds... or... well, you get the idea...

Perhaps Mr. Schoep should take up yoga or tai chi to mellow out a bit. Oh, that's right, those methods weren't created by white folk so they probably don't have any real value. Right. There's a part of me that wonders how a person can go through life filled with such hate and vile bile.

And, it's too bad that Mr. Schoep will be surrounded by his hateful colleagues on the 25th... and everyone else in the park will be celebrating diversity, tolerance, and social justice. I can picture it now: dark clouds hovering over the amphitheater while the sun shines bright on those in Artillery Park.

Don't just take a stand. Act.

Have you seen these public service ads, Don't just take a stand. Act. They're great. In one of them, a group of people are on a city street corner looking down at a piece of paper which someone threw on the sidewalk. They all bemoan the fact that who ever tossed it there should have put it in the trash can. But, they're unwilling to do anything about it. In another, a bunch of young ladies in a dorm do the same about running water. Then, one person comes by and acts (picks up the trash, turns off the water).

The neo-Nazi rally is the exact same way. We can stand around and chat about it... or we can act. The Valley Forge Rally for Social Justice is all about acting. It's about doing something, not just standing around bemoaning the fact the trash is on the ground.

Folks, it's simple: We cannot just take a stand. We must act. And, by action, I do not mean by taking up arms. I mean by exercising our First Ammendment rights by speaking out and demonstrating against hate, intolerance, and racism.

The whole truth is stranger than fiction

Once again, the accurate reporting at Overthrow by Bill White of the Libertarian Socialist News, hasn't quite caught the truth. White reports

The Southern Poverty Law Center has given an ad hoc group in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, two thousand dollars to pay street people to attend a demonstration against the National Socialist Movement.

The truth of the matter is that I've used my contacts with the federal government to get the feds to bus in human-looking aliens from Area 51. You probably don't know -- as most people don't know -- the federal government has a plan to replace all "regular" citizens with alien zombies who look like humans. They roll them out when needed; and we need them for the rally at the end of the month since indeed, there isn't anyone -- aside from Phil -- in southeast Pennsylvania who believes we need to speak out against hatred.

To be fair, this operation is classified TOP SECRET, so it's no wonder that Bill White doesn't know about it. Our plan is that the aliens will be flown in to Valley Forge aboard the Goodyear blimp. They will fast rope from the blimp to a staging area through the woods from the rally site. They will then march, in lock step, to the rally location where they will pin on smiles for the gathered media. When the rally is over, the human-looking aliens will be returned to Nevada aboard Air Force One which the President has dedicated to the operation on the 25th.

What Bill White doesn't understand is that we don't need to pay homeless people to attend. We've got the aliens care of the federal government. And, we'll have those citizens who want to meet the aliens.

Ah, we look forward to the rally.

I encourage all you readers to come to Valley Forge to help the Area 51 zombies speak out against hatred and intolerance.

Let's all get our bags of urine ready...

So, I recently discovered, when reading this posting at the very reputable website Overthrow.com, that my brother isn't really planning a family-friendly, peaceful demonstration of peace, tolerance, and social justice. No, Phil, a former police officer, a former officer of the Court, is really

planning to throw urine at cops to protest an upcoming National Socialist rally in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.

What Bill White, the guy who wrote this breaking news, doesn't know, is that we're actually gathering urine from various sources. I have a contract with an old friend of mine from high school who has a company of port-a-johns; we're collecting urine and what-ever-else which we plan on dropping on the law enforcement officers at Valley Forge on the 25th. I've contracted with Goodyear to use their blimp; we'll be dumping all over the police officers. We hope to hit some of the neo-Nazis, too.

Yeh. That's the ticket. ;-)

I think the moral of the story is don't believe everything you read on the web!

Coincidence that the neo-Nazis chose Yom Kippur?

Funny how it is... the Nazis have chosen Yom Kippur as the date of their hate rally in Valley Forge...

Me, I don't think there's much coincidence in the date they've chosen... While others are at their place of worship, deep in introspection and prayer, we need to be raising our voices to put hate in it's place...

Gonna be some hot music

The Rally is stacking up to be a great time: superb music already on the hook, more on the way; one excellent speaker already signed up and, of course, more on the way.

All we need now to make the Rally the peaceful statement the organizers intend it to be is to have a crowd.

My brother is spearheading this event in the tradition of our family: peaceful action. Our father, a conservative Episcopal priest, marched with Dr. King in March 1965... My hope is that this Rally raises awareness in a similar manner that the 1965 demonstrations did.

Are these dangerous times?

So the other day, somebody says to my brother, "Aren't you worred for your son, you getting mixed up in this with the Nazis and the Klan?"

As my brother put it, it is for our children that we do this, that we get involved, that we make a stand. When hatred rules, only evil comes from it. An evil world, one in which there's no diversity and no tolerance of differences, well, that's not a world I want to leave for our children.

So, the question, remains, is there personal danger? I think not. A peaceful get-together like we're planning in Valley Forge will be well protected by state, local, and federal authorities. We will be a crowd of peaceful people gathering to rebel evil just by our very presence.

Having said this, it appears that Phil is already a target by some radical white supremists: click here for a posting on a white supremist site that appears to be targeting Phil as the organizer for the Valley Forge Rally for Social Justice.

I note that the posters on this supremist site hide behind user names; they don't want anyone to know who they are. They hide behind swasticas and white hooded outfits.

Me, I'm not hiding behind a user name. I don't need to. I'm willing to not only speak my mind, but let my words be attributed to me. As is Phil. No matter the consequences; and we hope that in the long run, the consequence will be an America for all of us.

A little buzz starting

A couple of weeks ago, I stumbled onto The Corsair, a blog by Ron Mwangaguhunga in Williamsburg. Great read his blog is. More importantly, he blogged yesterday about the upcoming Valley Forge Rally for Social Justice. Folks, it's real simple: We can either sit by while hate takes over, or we can show action to make certain it doesn't. It is that simple. Join us. Join the conversation. Blog. Talk to your friends, your neighbors, your coworkers. Come to the rolling fields of Valley Forge on the 25th. Act.

A showing of peace... and let our voices be heard

Just got off the phone with my brother who has become consumed with this issue. I can see why. Until he and the Center for Education Rights applied for the permit to hold a peaceful counter-demonstration, no one was willing to stand up, be counted, and speak out. And now, he's trying to ensure that this rally is about tolerance and peace and social justice; and certainly not about him and his efforts.

Amen.

So, he'd like to get a band or two to play. You know, to make this rally more than just a time of ranting ourselves (leave that to the neo-Nazis across the park), but an opportunity for peaceful celebration, something appropriate for you, and me, and our families.

If you know of a band, and you think they'd be a good offering, see if you can marry the band up with the Center for Education Rights. Click here to get in touch with CER.

I saw a kickass band, Green Inside, a couple weeks ago while visiting Connecticut. They played on the roof of the Mohegan Sun before an evening fireworks session; I thought they'd be a great performer for this shindig, so I passed their name along to my brother. I don't know what will come of this. If you know Green Inside (hear a cut from their upcoming album here) and think they ought to be playing on the fields of Valley Forge, get in touch with them.

What are some other things which a peaceful demonstration against hate and intolerance and racism should offer?

Let us dwarf them in Valley Forge

I certainly believe in free speech... and thus the right for the neo-Nazi's to gather on the 25th and speak their peace. I just hope nobody shows up to listen. Seems that last weekend the KKK gathered in Sharpsburg, MD, (near where I went to high school) and nearly no one showed up at the Klan rally. The alternate events -- all events preaching tolerance and justice -- were well attended.

We need to ensure the same thing happens in Valley Forge. Please do more than read this blog. Tell your friends about the Valley Forge Rally for Social Justice. Plan on attending. Write to your local media events. We must not stand idly by. We must be people of action. As one resident of Sharpsburg said

The Klan has a First Amendment right to free speech, but I also have the right to say that's not what I believe in, that's not what my community stands for.

Stand up for tolerance and social justice.

Rally for Social Justice to Counter Nazi/KKK Rally in Valley Forge National Park

The Center for Education Rights (“CER”), a non-profit educational advocacy organization, has been granted a Special Use Permit from the National Park Service to conduct a peaceful, non-confrontational counter-demonstration, the Valley Forge Rally for Social Justice, to occur simultaneously with the hate rally of the National Socialist Movement (“NSM”) at a separate location within Valley Forge National Historical Park on Saturday, September 25, 2004.

According to Phil Stinson, president of the Center for Education Rights, it is his intent to offer a forum for a peaceful and educational rally as an alternative to the hate rally of the National Socialist Movement (NSM), KKK, Aryan Nation, and Skinheads. Stinson is actively seeking the participation of national and local civil rights organizations, community groups, religious organizations, and other concerned citizens to join in a peaceful Rally for Social Justice on September 25, 2004. Anyone interested in participating in the peaceful Valley Forge Rally for Social Justice is encouraged to contact CER by clicking here.

The Anti-Defamation League says that the NSM is the second largest neo-Nazi group in the country, trailing only the National Alliance. While some neo-Nazi organizations prefer blazers to brown shirts, this Minneapolis-based hate group is a throwback to the 1960's-era American Nazi Party, from which it descended; members wear Nazi uniforms and openly display swastikas to a degree unusual even among white supremacists. This explicit Nazi imagery apparently has not hurt its stature or standing on the racist right; in recent years it has grown considerably in membership and influence, with dozens of chapters across the country. Part of the reason for the group's growth has been its appeal to racist skinheads and other young white supremacists, who join in NSM activities ranging from literature distribution to armed paramilitary training.

CER is currently working with the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, the US Department of Justice, and the National Park Service to ensure a safe, peaceful, and educational environment in Valley Forge National Historical Park for the Valley Forge Rally for Social Justice at the time of the National Socialist Movement Hate Rally, 1-5 p.m., on Saturday, September 25, 2004.