Greencastle Man Spots Hanging Noose On Way To Work

QUINCY, IN — Greencastle resident Bruce Zink was on his way to work the morning of Aug. 28 when something caught his eye while driving through Quincy. It was enough to make him turn his car around and stop. It wasn't something you see on the road every day — it was a hanging noose.

“I drove past it and thought 'wow,' and swung around, stopped and took the photo," Zink said. "There's a little residence on that same lot, and there were people standing in the doorway looking at me, probably wondering what this guy is doing."

Zink said he was driving on U.S. Route 231 just south of Cloverdale when he spotted the noose hanging on the Hoosier Marine Service property.

The 39-year-old posted a photo of the hanging noose to his Facebook account that morning, captioning it with, "So I saw this on 231 on the way to work this morning. Putnam County people, how should we deal with this?"

Although the post said Putnam County, Zink said it actually took place in Owen County. (For more information on this and other neighborhood stories, subscribe to Indianapolis Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts and LIKE Indianapolis Patch on Facebook).

Since Aug. 28, the post has received dozens of comments and has been shared more than 150 times.

"I posted that hoping to get guidance or advice," Zink said. "I would've appreciated more practical advice, although some people did give me some."

Zink said he called Indiana State Police that morning, who told him they'd send somebody out to take a look and take it down if it was on public property. He also reported what he saw to the Bias Incident Response Team at IU Bloomington.

His friend also made a call to the Putnam County Sheriff's Department. Patch reached out to Putnam County Sheriff Scott Stockton, who said the situation has been taken care of.

"Someone posted that noose on private property, unbeknownst to the property owner," Stockton said. "I called ISP Putnamville, who contacted District 33 in Bloomington, who sent officers out to take care of it and take it down. They met with the (Hoosier Marine Service) property owners, I understand. I have no idea if it's kids that did this, or adults. It's a poor representation. The property owner didn't condone it as a business. It's an antagonistic symbol of hatred."

Zink said the noose was no longer hanging when he drove home that day, however it hit a nerve on an issue he said he's had for a while.

Zink said he's seen an uptick in visible and controversial paraphernalia and actions, especially the displaying of Confederate flags, ever since 21-year-old white male Dylann Roof shot and killed nine people during the June 2015 Charleston church massacre. Roof was later sentenced to death for the brutal hate crime.

"That fall I went to the Cataract Voluntary Fire Department Bean Dinner Festival, I'd gone there several years in a row," Zink said. "That year I drove past four or five Confederate flags, and people were selling exclusive Confederate paraphernalia. That was new that year, it was very upsetting to me."

Zink said he pulled his two children aside and explained this to them and even shared his thoughts in a Facebook post following the event.

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He's educating his children on this issue that's become extremely important to him, because Zink said he was "pretty ignorant" as a teenager.

"I didn't grow up around here, so some of the specifics I'm reacting to are new to me," Zink said. "I grew up mostly out West. Folks out there are plenty ignorant and racist, but it doesn't have the specific Southern character it has here in Indiana."

Zink credits some of his learning to a special opportunity he had in his twenties, when he lived and worked with different individuals.

"I lived in Cincinnati for about 10 years," Zink said. "While I was there I put in a stint doing secretarial work for the Underground Railroad Center. At the time it was just a collection of folks working in donated office space, but it was a really neat experience."

Since then, Zink's been angered at some of the actions and mindsets he's come across.

"I've pulled down Confederate flags a half-dozen times, but I don't think it does anything," Zink said.

Zink is working to create more dialogue on the subject of the Confederate flag and white supremacy, hoping to help change the mindsets he's come across in rural Indiana.

“Greencastle is kind of a sleepy little town, but it has to be a safe place, it has to be an accessible space for all the people who come through it," Zink said. “If rural Indiana is going to strive, that has to change.”

On Oct. 10, Zink is attending a community discussion at Putnam County Library, with members of a few activist groups he's part of in Greencastle.

"We're having a public community discussion on the history of the Confederate flag, and a few history professors from Depauw University are going to be giving that talk," Zink said. “I'm hoping to leverage more attention for these community discussions.”

For those interested in attending the Oct. 10 discussion, call the Putnam County Public Library at 765-653-2755.

This story was written with information from ProPublica's Documenting Hate Project, which is collecting reports to create a national database of hate crimes and bias incidents for use by journalists and civil-rights organizations. Have you been a victim to or have witnessed a hate crime? Tell your story here.

Image via Bruce Zink