On a cold and rainy Saturday afternoon in Newport, Tenn., Ku Klux Klan members joined forces to speak out on what they believe.
There were dozens of KKK members present, but they were not as strong and triumphant as their rivals. There were more protesters ranging between their early 20s to 40s with colorful signs and slogans that they lifted high in the air.
I had never been to a KKK rally before, so this event was very new to me. I did not know what to expect. Police who surrounded the courthouse in Newport carried large wooden sticks and shields for their faces. Everyone, including myself, had to go through metal detectors in order to get to the rally.
This event will not be erased from my mind due to the nature of this issue.
On the building next to the courthouse was a very large picture of Martin Luther King Jr. It stood out and could not be omitted from the average eye. His face appeared so calm and kind, the opposite of what these men stood for.
I kept listening to these racist men speak out on what they believe, and my eye kept looking toward that enormous sketch of Dr. King. As members of the KKK continued to hail Hitler with their hands pointed to the sky, the bongo drummers played even harder and the protesters chanted parables of peace so intensely that the Klan could not be heard for minutes.
Their own rally for pride and prejudice was being extinguished before their very eyes. I saw reporters and cameramen begin to join in with the protesters for a short minute before they realized what they were doing.
I had some incredible pictures of the Jan. 19 event but due to the rain they did not turn out accordingly. This event is evidence enough that our country is still struggling with equality. Our country states that all men are created equal. We need to strive for that.
This event was not about whites vs. blacks. The Klan opposes the Jews, Arabs and nearly anyone else who does not believe what they do. They are a very close-minded underground group of people that are very hard headed when it comes to change. They cannot accept change and it is very upsetting to the majority of Americans today.
It is obvious that they are living in the past to a dream that never was a dream. We all need to learn how to adapt to what is right –
EQUALITY.

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