Eurofest 2003

Today's Post-Dispatch has a headline "Musicians unknowingly play for white supremicists."

When German and Irish musical groups gathered for a folk festival in south St. Louis earlier this month, they were hoping for a night of food and fun. Instead, the unsuspecting musicians found themselves performing at a recruitment rally sponsored by a white supremacist organization that the FBI says presents "a continuing terrorist threat."

Now, the performers are angry because they had been duped into thinking that Eurofest 2003 was simply an ethnic celebration.

"We obviously had no idea what this event was before we played, or we wouldn't have performed there," said Matt Pantaleoni, leader of the Invera'an Pipe Band, a local bagpipes group.

Pantaleoni said that, after the band played, he noticed a few men in the crowd with "White Power" and two lightning bolts - the symbol of the German Nazi Waffen SS - tattooed on their bodies.

The men were members of the National Alliance, a group that the local Anti-Defamation League office calls "the BMW of neo-Nazi groups." They were among an audience of about 250 on Nov. 8 at the meeting hall of the German Cultural Society, near Jefferson Avenue and South Broadway.

Never heard of 'em, but I'll be watching now. I need some right-wing kooks to mock. Perhaps we can jail them in the same area as the ELF folks when they commit and are caught for wrongdoings.

In other St. Louis news of the "white supremicist" variety, the Riverfront Times castigates Earl Holt III. This is following Arch Pundit's hate mail from said person. Interesting reading (both) if you've got the time.

While, hey, this is America, and you can speak your mind, you an be DAMN sure I'd never take anything coming out of that man's (Holt's) mouth or keyboard seriously. Pure opinion and invective couched in some facts about black people and jail. Lovely. Mr. Holt - are you sure that IQ isn't 129.5 and you're bluffing for effect? I'd hate to think we have something in common beyond *yawn* the color of our skin.

hln

Posted by hln at November 28, 2003 08:12 PM | St. Louis | TrackBack