Two alleged members of the Ku Klux Klan have reportedly threatened people at a pro-LGBTQ+ rights rally in Kentucky on June 3. One of whom even pulled a gun on the small crowd.
Police on the scene in Corbin, however, didn’t arrest them, according to a police report obtained by news site Raw Story.
The outlet reports that one of the men handing out KKK recruitment cards was identified in the report as Kenneth Hutton, 44. He’d previously worked for Corbin’s city government.
“He quit about a month ago,” Marlon Sams, Corbin’s city manager, told Raw Story.
The other man was identified as Clayton Segebart, 43.
In the “call for service” report, the Corbin Police Department detailed the situation. Both men live in London, a nearby city, according to the police document.
At 2:21 p.m., the report said, “Male has gun out.”
It’s followed by a description of the gun: “Ruger 9mm” and “Smith and Wesson.”
A later entry stated, “Both males that were there with weapons are 98,” referring to the dispatch code that means leaving the scene. The outlet reports that though the police initially posted on social media that they had contacted the FBI over what happened, the post was later taken down.
The small rally held on June 3 was in protest of anti-trans legislation proposed in the Kentucky legislature. The group of about seven held the event in a local park.
The activists held signs in support of LGBTQ+ people. While they said they expected maybe some negative remarks, they didn’t expect to be terrorized.
Trent Osborne, one of the organizers of the peaceful event, said that one of the men told him “I oughta burn you and that sign,” according to the local newspaper the Times-Tribune.
“That is when things began happening. I asked the person why he had his hand on his weapon when we only had signs,” Osborne said.
He told Queer Kentucky, “They flipped us off and proceeded to pull over and approach us as if planned.”
Osborne added, “They began spouting slurs and hateful slander. The f-slur was said on multiple occasions when the two men approached, they each had their hands on their guns which were hidden in their pockets.”
A video of what happened was posted online.
Another organizer, Jonas Ray, recalled that while the men were harassing the protesters, another person was telling them a story about having family members be scared to come out in the community.
“Just to have that happening side by side,” Ray told the paper. “It’s so sad how much hate is here.”
The third organizer, Ajay Anderson, said they’d received negative comments after the incident.
All three said that law enforcement had been supportive of them after they expressed concerns about what happened.
The three activists are in the process of creating a nonprofit called Queerr Appalachia.
A human rights march is planned for June 24 in Corbin where Corbin police recommended the organizers request police presence to ensure the attendees’ safety after the June 3 situation.
“My goal is that through all this somehow to ensure that Corbin is inclusive to the point these people can’t even be here anymore,” Osborne said. “Corbin needs to be so inclusive that the KKK has to leave.”
Ray added: “We want to make them uncomfortable because their hatred is unwelcome here.”
In the weeks following the incident, flyers supporting the Trinity White Knights of the Klu Klux Klan have shown up in Corbin.
“Parents take control of our schools,” the KKK flyers read, according to Raw Story. “Remove all filth from school libraries. Two gender policies. End the presence of men in the girlsroom.”
They end with a recruitment pitch: “Parents take your stand. Join the Klan.”
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