Ku Klux Klan Adopt-A-Highway: KKK Fights To ‘Adopt’ A Georgia Highway, Sparks Controversy
The Ku Klux Klan is working diligently to make its presence visibly known in the state of Georgia. According to 11Alive, the KKK is fighting to adopt a Georgia highway and refuses to back down until its arguments are taken into deep consideration.
It has been reported that the International Keystone Knights of the Ku Klux Klan completed an Adopt-A-Highway application only to have it denied by the state. So, on Thursday, July 9, the Georgia Court of Appeals finally heard arguments from the controversial organization in reference to the legalities behind the state’s decision denying the request.
According to CNN, the application was completed back in 2012 but, the state’s refusal was based on “the impact of erecting a sign naming an organization which has long rooted history of civil disturbance would cause a significant public concern.”
The Klan, with the help of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) responded to the denial by filing a lawsuit against the state. Both organizations have raised arguments about the state’s contradictory stance where free speech is concerned. Although the Southern Poverty Law Center has described the KKK as “the most infamous — and oldest — of American hate groups,” the organization still argues the refusal violates their right to free speech.
“The concern for me is that the moment the court allows the state to draw a line and say ‘this speech is good, this speech is bad’ is a very scary day,” said Maya Dillard Smith, executive director of the ACLU of Georgia. “Because today it’s the KKK. Tomorrow it’s ‘black lives matter,’ or anything else that the state determines to be offensive.”
Ku Klux Klan fights for right to 'adopt a highway' http://t.co/kRvS83RVf4 pic.twitter.com/SvR3q0BEle
— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) July 9, 2015
However, Georgia’s Assistant Attorney General Brittany Bolton, countered the KKK and ACLU’s argument with a statement regarding the state’s position where free speech is concerned. According to Yahoo! News, Bolton cited how the government reserves the right to control the content of road signs. “This case is about whether a state-designed, state-created sign, erected on a state highway, with the name Georgia in bold letters, constitutes the state’s own speech,” said Bolton.
State officials also cited a number of disadvantages a KKK sign could cause. In addition to the possibility of social unrest, drivers could also be distracted. Bolton also argued that although the highway would be adopted by the Klan, it would still be a reflection of the state.
If the case turns out to be anything like the 1997 Missouri case where a Klan chapter made a similar request, the organization would have to “alterr its membership requirements to qualify for the adopt-a-highway program would ‘censor its message and inhibit its constitutionally protected conduct.'” However, the Georgia Court of Appeals has yet to release a ruling in regards to the Ku Klux Klan’s appeal.
Do you thik the KKK should be allowed to adopt a highway? Share your thoughts.
[Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images]
