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Oakland’s mayor announced that a hate crime investigation was initiated in response to “nooses” discovered in a park. She argued that these were racially-charged symbols of terror. The Police even had photos of the “nooses”. However, the person that placed them there argued that they were not nooses. The individual, an African American, argued that they were exercise equipment.<\/p>\n
From ABC News:<\/span><\/p>\n Mayor Libby Schaaf said Wedesday that a hate crime investigation was under way after a social media post identified a noose at the city’s popular Lake Merritt. Police said they searched the area on Tuesday and found five ropes attached to trees.<\/p>\n The Police Department provided five photographs of trees, some of which showed knotted ropes and one that appeared to have a piece of plastic pipe attached to a rope, hanging from tree limbs.<\/p>\n They have been removed by city officials.<\/p>\n Victor Sengbe, who is black, told KGO-TV that the ropes were part of a rigging that he and his friends used as part of a larger swing system. He also shared video of the swing in use.<\/p>\n “Out of the dozen and hundreds and thousands of people that walked by, no one has thought that it looked anywhere close to a noose. Folks have used it for exercise. It was really a fun addition to the park that we tried to create,” Sengbe said.<\/p>\n “It’s unfortunate that a genuine gesture of just wanting to have a good time got misinterpreted into something so heinous,” he told the station.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n ABC has the full article here<\/a>. Thanks to Gun Bunny for the link.<\/strong><\/span> This isn’t the first time that people misidentified items as nooses. A couple of people, who are Facebook friends, previously reported nooses at different college campuses.<\/p>\n From The College Fix:<\/span><\/p>\n Perkins shares the same hometown and last name as a Louisiana State University student who reported a purported noose on that campus. They are also Facebook friends.<\/p>\n Clarke Perkins alleged in 2015, right after the racial riots that rocked the University of Missouri, that an electric cable with a knot at its end was a “noose.”<\/p>\n After the truth was revealed, she explained her confusion by saying she thought it was a “makeshift” noose, not “professionally made.” Perkins also blamed the racial climate at LSU, saying that “if black students were more accepted here, I wouldn’t have thought [it was] a noose”:<\/p><\/blockquote>\n The College Fix has the story<\/a> on this fiasco. Thanks to Gun Bunny for this link.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"