Post by robeiae on Dec 21, 2016 20:28:06 GMT -5
www.cbsnews.com/news/andrew-mcclinton-arrested-in-burning-of-black-church-in-mississippi/
The arson--which occurred on November 1st--got a lot of press, due to "Vote Trump" graffiti that accompanied it. And of course, a GoFundMe page was set up to help rebuild:
So, is this the wave of the future? Destroy something that could use a face-lift and pin it on a political faction, then hope people set up GoFundMe pages to get additional monies?
Mississippi authorities arrested a man Wednesday in the burning of an African-American church that was also spray-painted with the words, “Vote Trump.”
Andrew McClinton of Leland, Mississippi, was charged with first degree arson of a place of worship, said Warren Strain, spokesman for the Mississippi Department of Public Safety. McClinton is African-American.
Strain said McClinton attended the church, CBS affiliate WJTV reports....
“We do not believe it was politically motivated. There may have been some efforts to make it appear politically motivated,” Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney, who is also the state fire marshal, told The Associated Press.
Andrew McClinton of Leland, Mississippi, was charged with first degree arson of a place of worship, said Warren Strain, spokesman for the Mississippi Department of Public Safety. McClinton is African-American.
Strain said McClinton attended the church, CBS affiliate WJTV reports....
“We do not believe it was politically motivated. There may have been some efforts to make it appear politically motivated,” Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney, who is also the state fire marshal, told The Associated Press.
In the days after the fire, a GoFundMe page raised more than $230,000 to help the church rebuild. The account has since been deleted.
“The animus of this election cycle combined with the potent racial history of burning black churches as a political symbol makes this event something we must not ignore,” wrote J. Blair Reeves Jr., who started the GoFundMe. “Only two weeks ago, the internet came together to help repair a North Carolina GOP field office that had been burned by thugs. Justice demands we do the same now. More details as they are available. Can we do this? Can we help show the world, the country, and most importantly, the churchgoers of Hopewell Baptist that we, as a society, are better than this?”
“The animus of this election cycle combined with the potent racial history of burning black churches as a political symbol makes this event something we must not ignore,” wrote J. Blair Reeves Jr., who started the GoFundMe. “Only two weeks ago, the internet came together to help repair a North Carolina GOP field office that had been burned by thugs. Justice demands we do the same now. More details as they are available. Can we do this? Can we help show the world, the country, and most importantly, the churchgoers of Hopewell Baptist that we, as a society, are better than this?”
