Stallworth

A picture of Ron Stallworth right before he speaks at Town Hall at my office.  They've got a particularly good line up of speakers lately, including one of the attorneys from the Cosby trial.

Stallworth's story about joining the Klan back in the day, which became Spike Lee's BlackKKlansman, is fascinating.  It was interesting to hear him talk about how much of what he did was about prevention of terrorist acts (burning crosses for instance) not arrests.  The goal was to shut them down before they happened, even if it meant subterfuge (sending cop cars past planned burn sites).  He also talked about how he wasn't infiltrating only the Klan, but the left as well, basically getting a read on all potential violence in his city.

He talked for a while about getting the story/book to print and film, which was an interesting angle and got away from the basic story I'd already watched by watching the movie (and he covered where there was some artistic license like his girlfriend, although the cross burning on the day he was taken off the case was true).

Stallworth's outspoken (negative) opinions about our current president clearly made the coordinator (not the one on stage, but the one with the microphone) nervous.  I saw one audience member leave after the first 45 comment.  I'm ok with that.  One out of an audience of hundreds.  And the current administration isn't particularly friendly (ouch, that was a Minnesotan way to put that) to LGBTQ, or really anyone who isn't their core. That's not aligned with corporate values.

Great presentation - wish I could have been at the one later in the evening (elsewhere) where he talked about his recent phone call with David Duke.