| Neo Nazis Rally in Toledo - No Riot This Time |
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| Written by Daniel White | |
| Tuesday, 13 December 2005 | |
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As they promised, the Neo-Nazi group returned to Toledo Saturday to stage another rally. Unlike the October event, this time there was no rioting. Sixty-three National Socialist Movement supporters and 170 counter-protestors were kept separate by 700 law enforcement officials to prevent the situation from escalating. Unlike the planned October demonstration, which was cut short by the violence, this one was not to protest gangs and rising crime in one Toledo neighborhood (as they claimed before); but instead to protest how police and the city handled the October confrontation. (Click 'READ MORE' to coninue...) As part of preparations, the city obtained a court order to prevent the group from going into the neighborhood and instead restricting them to the demonstration area. After the event, they were escorted to the interstate by the Ohio State Highway Patrol and ordered to not return to the city or they would be subject to arrest. Despite the fact that their message is hateful, the group does have the right to spread that message. The Toldeo police chief, Michael Navarre, said in October "If we're forced to let them back in the city, it has to be on our terms." It says a lot about the mindset of the City if they have to be forced to allow the expression of First Amendment rights. Makes you wonder what other rights they must be forced to allow citizens to have. Make no mistake, we are 100% opposed to the message this hate group is preaching. But we are also opposed to denying them the right to speak and demonstrate. Click here to read the Plain Dealer article. |