Feds finally "get tough" in church arson probe

by Keith Mitchell

This article was reprinted from the June 15, 1996 issue of the People's Weekly World. For subscription information see below. All rights reserved - may be used with PWW credits.

In a recent speech, President Clinton promised to get tough on those responsible for a rash of church bombings in the South.

"Every family has a right to expect that when they walk to church or synagogue or mosque they will find a house of worship, not charred remnants of a hateful act done by cowards in the night," the president said in a radio address. While Clinton doesn 't consider the bombings a "national conspiracy" he did say, "It is clear that racial hostility is the driving force behind a number of these incidents."

The recent bombings have sent shock waves throughout the Black community, and raise new fears of right-wing terrorist activity, similar to the Ku Klux Klan during the civil rights era.

However, questions have arisen about the role federal officials are playing in the investigation, including administering lie detector tests to church members. A delegation from the National Council of Churches and the Center for Democratic Renewal met with Attorney General Janet Reno to discuss their dissatisfaction with the investigation.

"The government needs to be fairer in what 's going on," said Roy Lloyd of the National Council of Churches in an interview with the World. "The perpetrators of these crimes are most likely from white supremacist groups and the government should stop criminalizing the victim."

A bill introduced by John Conyers (D- Mich.) calls for lowering the amount of damage required - from $10,000 to $5,000 - to be considered a federal crime. "The rash of Black church burnings in our southern cities has clear and unmistakable meaning for African Americans," said Conyers. "It's the ugliest part of our nation's past. We have to say as a nation that we will not tolerate hatred."

"Nationally speaking, we don't have a law against hate crimes," said Noel Chandler, research associate at the Center for Democratic Renewal." The laws now are so vague, I see this [bill] as a step in the right direction."

This week federal agents entered the investigation of a suspicious fire that destroyed a former sanctuary on the grounds of the Matthews-Murkland Presbyterian Church, a Black church in Charlotte, North Carolina. A suspect is being questioned. It was at least the 30th fire at a Black Southern church since early 1995 and the second one this week.

These attacks, many feel, are a manifestation of the right-wing control of Congress. With the attacks on affirmative action, and the criminalizing of people of color, this attitude has turned to violence. "There's a mood of nastiness," said Lloyd. "It pits neighbor against neighbor and this mood takes a primarily political nature. In trying to stop these bombings, we 're fighting for the soul of our nation."