LULAC Condemns Hate Crime on Eve of Jewish Holiday

April 14, 2014

Contact: Paloma Zuleta, 202-833-6130, PZuleta (at) LULAC . org

Washington, D.C. - LULAC laments the lives lost at a Jewish Community Center of Greater Kansas City and at the Village Shalom Retirement Community in Kansas City, Kansas. Yesterday, on the day before the Jewish Passover Holiday the founder and former leader of the Carolina Knights of the Ku Klux Klan and the White Patriot Party shot to death 3 people leaving behind a distraught community.

"As a civil rights organization that fights against oppression and acts of injustice, LULAC condemns the hateful acts of violence committed by an individual who has been described as a raging anti-semite," said LULAC National President Margaret Moran. "It is specially tragic that the violence was committed on the eve of Passover, a significant time for the Jewish community."

Last year in Kansas City, LULAC participated in a rally meant to counter a demonstration which was organized by hate groups. These groups were celebrating the hateful acts of Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass, which marked the beginning of the Holocaust. LULAC Vice President of the Midwest, Darryl Morin, participated in the rally.

In reaction to the shootings yesterday, Mr. Morin stated, "LULAC rejects any and all hateful acts of violence that are solely based on race, religion or creed against any community. We call on our elected officials to stop using inflammatory rhetoric that all too often contributes to these extreme views and we urge that we work together to pass legislation like immigration reform, that will unite us, not divide us. May their memory be a blessing."

LULAC fully appreciates that hate crimes targeted at a given community, is really an affront to all communities and will continue to fight against such ignorance and intolerance.

About LULAC: The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is the nation’s largest and oldest civil rights volunteer-based organization that empowers Hispanic Americans and builds strong Latino communities. Headquartered in Washington, DC, with 900 councils around the United States and Puerto Rico, LULAC’s programs, services and advocacy address the most important issues for Latinos, meeting critical needs of today and the future. For more information, visit www.LULAC.org