Very Very ugly!
Neo Nazi Group Vows To Show Up Regardless
Last Update: Apr 10, 2007 10:42 PM
Some Cincinnati City Council members urge the City Manager to refuse to let a group of Neo-Nazis march in Over-the-Rhine on April 20th. They also signed a motion to tighten the city's permit process to try to prevent groups like the Nazi's from getting permits in the future.
They cite what's called the "fighting words doctrine" as a way to counter the group's first amendment rights. The Supreme Court says that speech is protected unless the expression is "likely to produce a clear and present danger of a serious intolerable evil that rises above mere inconvenience or annoyance."
Local 12's Rich Jaffe found regardless of the legalities, the Neo-Nazi's say they're coming to Cincinnati. The streets of Over-the-Rhine today are a far cry from the riots Toledo saw when the American National Socialist Workers Party staged a march there last year, and Cincinnati City Council members want to keep it that way. That's why today a group of council members signed a motion to tighten up the permit process, hoping to keep groups like the Socialist Nazi's from marching.
Laketa Cole, City Council Member: "So, we hope we are sending a message that the negativity will not be tolerated in the City of Cincinnati. Particularly to have a march in Over-the-Rhine where we've invested so much to turn our city around is something that we really need to be careful and stand up against, so I am standing, we are standing against this coming to the City of Cincinnati."
City officials are also trying to either alter or cancel the group's already issued permit, and the Socialists say they're going to sue, on the grounds that the city's violating their constitutional rights.
But Bill White, the head of the Socialist group, says regardless of ordinances, permits or anything else, he and his group are coming to Cincinnati on April 20th and they will be walking down this street if they can't march.
Bill White, American National Socialist Workers Party: "We're going to march on the 20th, they can't, there's no law prohibiting us from walking down the street, we're going to walk down the street, if they fail to protect us and there's a riot, we'll sue them for allowing a riot to occur."
You can bet the idea of swastika wearing Neo-Nazi's in Over-the-Rhine isn't sitting well with local residents.
Roy Little, Resident: "Let me tell you something, we been fighting for like 200 years, so come on with that little 90 day workout whatever you all do because you coming down here looking for trouble, we ain't going there bothering them so don't come here bothering us."
Charles Merriweather, Resident: "I think it's going to be a disaster because of the tension that's already here."
Rich Jaffe, Local 12.
Late this afternoon, the Socialist group announced that they hit a snag in their efforts to hire a prominent local law firm to represent them. They now tell us, they may use the ACLU to file their lawsuit against the city.
Right after they release new numbers showing a decrease in crime in over the rhine, this happens.
