MOLINE, Illinois -- The same white supremacist recruitment fliers that were found in Davenport neighborhoods last year are still appearing as recently as yesterday in Moline, according to residents and police.
The fliers are recruiting for the National Alliance, a designated hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. It's known as "the most dangerous and best organized neo-Nazi formation in America. Explicitly genocidal in its ideology, National Alliance materials call for the eradication of the Jews and other races and the creation of an all-white homeland."
In January, James Mathias, a Davenport man who is a dues-paying member of the National Alliance was arrested for bringing a weapon to school grounds while placing recruitment fliers on cars in the Brady Street Stadium parking lot during a football game.
Despite Mathias' arrest, the fliers have continued to appear in the Quad City area, suggesting the existence of other National Alliance members.
In response, a group called One Human Family QCA formed last year to drown out the hate both in the Quad Cities and in Charlottesville, Virginia. They held a well-attended "No Hate" rally in Van Der Veer Park last August as well as a symposium to discuss strategies to combat hate in the Quad Cities last December.
The organization has started selling yard signs that spread a welcoming message to all people using yard signs. Rabbi Henry Jay Karp, co-founder of One Human Family said he wants to spread the signs all over the Quad Cities.
The signs say the following message in three languages: “No matter who you are or where you’re from we’re glad you’re our neighbor.”
Because the fliers’ content is protected free speech, there is no legal action that can be taken.
"While the message contained in the fliers is protected under the First Amendment, we do not condone the spread of hatred or racially biased speech aimed to undermine the values of our society," said a Moline police statement.
Moline Detective Michael Griffin said people who get these fliers on their cars can exercise their rights as well and discard the materials.