Anonymous Outs GOP Politicians as KKK Members

TX Sen John Cornyn - Majority Whip & KKK member? 

Now I'm not sure how many of you heard about the recent announcement by the global hactivst collective known as Anonymous of their intent to post the identities of thousands of members of the Ku Klux Klan online in a massive data dump intended to out racists - which went under the Twitter hashtags #OpKKK and #HoodsOff.

Well as this group of progressive political hactivists have proved before, they're highly proficient with computers and they don't make idle threats.

They released a portion of a list of what is said to be over 1,000 individuals - the full list will supposedly be released on Thursday.

The revelation that some of the people who were hiding their white supremacist beliefs under a hood are not only members of law enforcement and corrections officers, but mayors of major American cities and even four members of the United States Senate is sure to have political repercussions for the Republican Party.

The senior U.S. Senator from Texas, John Cornyn, III (pictured above) currently serves as the Majority Whip and is one of the highest-ranking Senators on Capitol Hill.

But according to a list posted on UsUncut.com of high-profile political figures outed as Klan members that was originally posted on the document-dumping site pastebin, Cornyn is listed as a member of the United White Knights of the KKK.

The implications of his being a member of the klan are pretty staggering, and not just because of the potential for his racist beliefs to affect the kinds of laws he supports or opposes in the Senate and the huge influence he wields over that process.

According to information on his Wikipedia page, Cornyn served as a district judge in San Antonio, Texas for six years before being elected to the Texas State Supreme Court where served for seven years; then he ran for Texas attorney general and won.

It's actually frightening to think of the impact his personal beliefs have had on the lives of hundreds of African-American and Latino suspects who saw the inside of his court room over the years.

Like the widespread criticism he received as Texas Attorney General for dragging his heels on investigating the convictions of 43 African-Americans from the town of Tulia, Texas on drug conspiracy charges based on the testimony of a single narcotics agent.

As the Austin Chronicle reported back in 2002, the 43 blacks arrested represented 16% of the town's African-American population.

Rep Joe Wilson of South Carolina

Remember South Carolina Republican Congressman Joe Wilson? (pictured left)

Same right-wing nutbag who rudely shouted out "You lie!" to President Obama in front of both houses of Congress, members of the Supreme Court, the Joint Chiefs of Staff and invited guests during a nationally televised State of the Union address in 2009?

Yeah, that guy. He's listed as a member of the United Northern and Southern Knights of the KKK.

So was North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis, the former Speaker of the NC legislature, an ally of current NC Governor Pat McCrory, and a major architect of the states draconian voter suppression laws.

As of right now when I'm writing this, the major news media outlets seem to be holding back on reporting the story until more information about the list itself can be verified.

But a number of the politicians outed on the list have released public denial statements already; including Jim Gray the Mayor of Lexington, Kentucky.

According to an article posted on Newsweek.com, Anonymous seems to be playing coy about the the information that appeared on pastebin, claiming that they will release the full list on November 5th when they will observe a global protest event against corporate and political corruption known as the Million Mask March.

English Catholic activist Guy Fawkes

November 5th is when people in England have traditionally observed Guy Fawkes Night which commemorates the failure of the Gunpowder Plot of 1605 when a group of Catholic activists attempted to blow up the Palace of Westminster during the opening of Parliament in response to anger over oppression of Catholics by the Protestant King James I.

Guy Fawkes (pictured left), the English explosives expert who was preparing to set the fuse on 36 barrels of gunpowder in a cellar beneath the House of Lords, was discovered before the explosion took place and he was arrested and taken to the Tower of London where he was tortured until he gave up the names of the co-conspirators in the plot.

His exploits became familiar to many Americans after the 2006 film 'V for Vendetta' in which the title character, a charming but violent anti-hero terrorist named V attempts to repeat the attempt to blow up Parliament in a future dystopian England ruled by an oppressive conservative government.

Will the release of the list on Thursday be as explosive as the original plot?

There are a lot of people waiting to find out, in the meantime there are some sitting U.S Senators and mayors in America who are going to be sitting in the media hot seat tomorrow. 

And if it's true they are, or have been members of violent white supremacist organization the impact on their political careers, reputations, and the image Republican party, could be significant.

Ferguson Police Impound the "Accountability Truck"

The Color Of Change "Accountability Truck" in Ferguson, MO

Police in Ferguson, Missouri may not have shot any unarmed people lately, but they're still up to some pretty sketchy tactics.

The mainstream media attention of the past summer has faded, but hundreds of citizens, activists and clergy members have been engaged in ongoing peaceful protests in Ferguson, Missouri to end police brutality - and hold the department accountable for the death of Michael Brown.

As part of their peaceful protest strategy, the activist group Color Of Change uses a small truck (pictured above) that serves as a mobile billboard with an open message painted on the side to Missouri Governor Jay Nixon.

They've nicknamed it the "Accountability Truck" and it drives alongside protesters when they march along the streets of the community, or parks near stationary protests etc. The words imprinted on the side pose a pretty simple question to Governor Nixon: "What will YOU do in this moment with the world watching?"

According to an online article by Lindsey Toler, editor of the River Front Times blog, the incident happened last Wednesday night November 5th when a larger than usual number of protesters turned out in Ferguson for the Million Mask March organized by Anonymous - the activist hacker collective that openly warned Ferguson police weeks ago that they would undertake actions to support the protesters.

As Toler reported, the Million Mask March takes place on Guy Fawkes Night, the anniversary of the failed 17th century Gunpowder Plot.

Guy Fawkes was a member of a group of Catholics who planned on assassinating the Protestant English King James I by blowing up the House of Lords in London back in 1605. Fawkes was arrested on November 5, 1605 while guarding the explosives.

The March organized by Anonymous takes place in cities all over the world and in a way this story is reflective of how fiction inspires reality - and a determination to seek the truth.

Fawkes' real-life aborted explosive political statement was widely popularized in the 2006 Warner Brothers film "V For Vendetta" by the title character "V" (played brilliantly by Hugo Weaving), who wears a Guy Fawkes mask throughout the film.

In the story (based on the 1982 graphic novel of the same name written by Alan Moore and illustrated by David Lloyd) V inspires thousands of people in England to don identical masks as a form of mass protest against a bleak totalitarian English government in the future after war has devastated the planet.

While protests in Ferguson had been peaceful for weeks, the appearance of large numbers of outside protesters on Guy Fawkes night last Wednesday elevated the energy of protesters who'd gathered in front of the Ferguson police department. 

According to witnesses at the scene, when the group decided to march towards I-270 to block traffic, police moved to block the protesters. Apparently an unmarked Ferguson police car followed the truck and literally pulled the driver out of his seat, arrested him, towed the truck away and detained him for several hours.

According to various media accounts of the incident including the St. Louis Post Dispatch, police claimed they arrested the driver and impounded the truck because it was "blocking traffic".

A police spokesman said the Accountability Truck blocked an ambulance from responding to an emergency call, but witnesses dispute that; claiming the ambulance flashed it's light as the truck went by and protesters immediately gave way to let the ambulance through. 

Police are getting increasingly anxious with the approaching decision of the grand jury on whether or not to indict Darren Wilson, the Ferguson police officer who shot and killed Michael Brown.

The decision is expected soon and is causing anxiety amongst local residents of all races. Some are worried of the aftermath if the grand jury decides not to charge Wilson; gun sales have increased even though the protests recently have been relatively peaceful.

People on the scene in Ferguson sharing live updates on Twitter are reporting a large increase in media presence preparing to report the grand jury decision; some have reported seeing up to three tanks parked in the area.

Regardless of the decision, the case has created anxiety in many police officers; not just in Ferguson but around the nation as well. There have been rallies around the country to support Darren Wilson even before all the facts of the shooting have been determined.

But police arresting the driver of a truck with a message painted on the side is troubling.

As if the mere expression of the idea of the Governor being asked how he will handle the most controversial event of his political life is something to be feared. And arrested. Removed from view.

Speaking of the Freedom of Expression, did you hear about the mural of Michael Brown that was painted on a security gate in Trenton, NJ?

Back in October the Trenton Downtown Association removed the image of Brown in his high school graduation cap at the request of Trenton police who said they were concerned an image of Brown sent the wrong message about community relations between local residents in Trenton and the Trenton Police Department.

Actions like that remind us that the shooting of Brown is indicative of much deeper problems that affect the entire nation; Ferguson just happens to be the focal point.

In the coming days the media coverage of Ferguson will intensify as the grand jury reaches it's decision, but in the meantime the Accountability Truck is back on the road carrying its message to Governor Jay Nixon around town.

Organizations like Color of Change are continuing to pressure Nixon to appoint a special prosecutor to the case. But whatever the result, let's just hope it leads to a deeper understanding of what led to the events that left Brown dead in the street; and better communication and interaction between Ferguson police and members of the community.

Above all, let's hope the grand jury decision doesn't provoke the same kind of explosive protest that Guy Fawkes and his rebellious Catholic co-conspirators were seeking in England back in 1605.

Speaking truth to power works a lot better than explosives. Plus you can't arrest the truth, or impound it in a fenced-in lot; or sand blast it off of a wall. Or shoot it.