Elected officials and residents gathered once again on Saturday at the old courthouse in Hillsborough to condemn the actions taken by white supremacists during a virtual Zoom call.
On July 26, a virtual Northern Orange NAACP town hall event on how to transform and improve law enforcement was disrupted by white supremacists. The Zoom call was interrupted when users began posting racist imagery and slurs, as well as videos of graphic content like KKK rallies and sexual material.
LaTarndra Strong — the vice president of the NAACP chapter — told the gathered crowd on Saturday evening that when she spoke on the Zoom call, monkey sounds came out. She also said her daughter was on the call as well and saw racist slurs and sexual imagery flash across the screen, up to “85 times per minute” after being posted by white supremacists.
“As soon as I started talking, we heard the monkey sounds,” Strong told 97.9 The Hill last week. “It [looked] as if when I was talking, monkey sounds would be coming out.”
Hillsborough Mayor Jenn Weaver, who was on the Zoom call as well, told the crowd that the white supremacists who interrupted the virtual town hall likely didn’t know the Mayor, a judge and other elected officials would be on the call.
“What they knew is that it was a Zoom meeting being held by a majority Black organization,” Weaver said. “So when you think about that, think about the intent behind it and think about the harm that it caused.”
The town hall to discuss law enforcement reform was scheduled after months of denouncement of systemic racism from Americans and others around the world, sparked by the death of George Floyd. Hillsborough has seen numerous demonstrations in support of police reform and the Black Lives Matter movement.
Del Ward, who has organized other protests in Hillsborough, took the opportunity to call for police reform and systemic change.
“We have to keep pushing the envelope,” Ward said. “We are not asking for a statewide hate crime law. We are demanding one. We are not asking that Black lives matter. We are demanding. The time for change is now gone. And if we aren’t fighting for a better future for the generations after us, then at the end of our lives, we will die knowing we did nothing productive for humanity.”
Strong told 97.9 The Hill last week that there’s much work to be done in battling blatant displays of intimidation and white supremacy.
“Let’s not forget,” she said, “it was less than a year ago the KKK themselves were in Hillsborough, they selected [the town for recruitment.] For two weeks after, they would leave behind propaganda with racial harassment and violent language. Something is happening here, and we need to be proactive in thinking about it and addressing it.”
At Saturday’s rally, Strong ended the protest with a message to the community.
“Let’s fight for Black lives.”
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