Greensboro’s Child

Codename: Greenkil: Part 2 Escalation - pg 101 (emphasis mine)

“The pathology of the white ghetto” is what southern philosopher Reverend Will Campbell calls it (the culture from which the contemporary Klan is drawn). It is the same kind of antisocial behavior so prevalent in black ghettos. It is born of poverty and powerlessness, of humiliation and hopelessness. For many, the Klan and its ilk represent the only way a poor white person can say “I am somebody,” the only way he or she can escape emotionally from the economic and social wasteland of the American society. For a while, in the robes or security uniforms, they can be part of an organization that carries an aura of mystery and danger and strength.

It is a sad commentary that idealistic liberals and leftists can easily understand how socioeconomic factors produce street gangs and thugs in the black ghetto, but fail to recognize the same phenomenon among poor whites who join the Klan. To liberals, blacks are oppressed and exploited; the whites are hate-filled and despicable. No one in his right mind would consider daring a Chicago street gang to “come out from under your rocks and face the wrath of the people.” Yet that is precisely the challenge the WVO issued to the Klan in mid-October.”

I read this book after participating in a discussion on Ed Cone’s blog, where I felt a bit uninformed regarding the context surrounding the events of 11/3/79. The first 100 pages of Codename: Greenkil was chock full of information regarding participants on both sides of the conflict.

Page 101 proved to be the end of objective research, and the beginning of a pointed perspective.