Police in El Paso, Texas, and the city's NAACP branch are condemning a group of people who appeared in viral social media videos wearing white robes and hoods in the style of the Ku Klux Klan. The group may include young people.
The videos show the group walking along a neighborhood street that police said is in El Paso. In one clip, the person filming can be heard laughing and telling the group, "Y'all gotta yell something, güey." The word "güey" is Spanish slang, most commonly used in Mexico, similar to "dude" in English.
Carl B. Dwyer Jr., president of the NAACP's El Paso branch, denounced the display at a news conference on Monday morning. He said it was deeply hurtful to Black Americans, for whom the Klan has been a source of real terror since the Civil War. After supporters sang "Lift Every Voice and Sing," the hymn often called the Black national anthem, Dwyer addressed the idea that the episode was harmless. "Many believe that it's just a joke," he said. "It hurts," he added, repeating the words.
El Paso Police Chief Peter Pacillas said in a statement that the department is examining whether the group, "reportedly including young people," broke any laws. He named disorderly conduct and "other applicable offenses" as possibilities.
"Symbols and language associated with the Ku Klux Klan represent a history of terror, violence, and racial hatred," Pacillas said. "They have no place in our community. Treating that history as a costume or a joke is unacceptable and contrary to the values of respect and safety that define El Paso."
Artie C. Maxwell Jr., pastor of Mount Zion Baptist Church in El Paso, also spoke and offered historical background for a city that briefly sympathized with the Confederacy. "We may think that it is a joke, but it's not a joke when it comes to the lives that have come before us," he said, adding that many people have died at the hands of those who wore such costumes.
Pacillas asked anyone with information about the incident to come forward. He also noted that the right to free expression has boundaries. "Free expression has limits when it crosses into conduct that threatens public order or the safety of others," he said.
Dwyer called on local educators to help students understand history and how it shapes the present. "We're calling on all of the superintendents, all of the school districts, please, speak up. Please, do something about this," he said.
