KKK Literature Left On Lawns Of Cherry Hill Homes: Police

CHERRY HILL, NJ — Cherry Hill police are investigating several reports of literature from the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) that was left on the front lawns homes in the Old Orchard section of the township over the weekend.

The printed messages were left in plastic bags at several homes overnight Friday into Saturday, according to the Cherry Hill Police Department.

“This type of hatred and bigotry will not be tolerated in our town,” Cherry Hill Mayor Chuck Cahn said. “We will investigate this matter until we identify the individuals responsible and will prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law.”

"I firmly believe that hate doesn't live in Cherry Hill," Camden County East NAACP Chapter President Lloyd Henderson told nj.com.

The materials are attributed to the Loyal White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, according to the Cherry Hill Sun. The group, which is labelled as a racist terrorist group and an extremist right wing terrorist group by the Terrorism Analysis and Research Consortium, is a self-professed Christian organization dedicated to “restoring America to a White, Christian nation founded on God's word.”

“I was sickened to hear that KKK fliers had been distributed around Cherry Hill this weekend," State Sen. James Beach said on Monday. "I am grateful to the Cherry Hill police department for investigating this matter and to the Anti-Defamation League for their assistance. This type of hate filled rhetoric has no place in our community, or our state. I am proud to represent a vibrant and diverse constituency, and have no tolerance for incidents like these in our own backyard.”

“America has always been a melting pot of different cultures, religions, and ideas. We are a nation founded on religious tolerance, but this past weekend’s incidents of racial and religious injustice have marred our communities. Hate, bigotry, and racism have no place in our communities or our country," Majority Leader Louis Greenwald, and Assemblywoman Pamela Lampitt (LD-6) said in a joint statement. “We are disgusted by this cowardly attack against our community, and stand with the Cherry Hill Township Police Department as they investigate this matter.”

The incident wasn't isolated to Cherry Hill. At least one person in Mount Laurel also claimed receiving this material, according to the Courier Post.

According to the New Jersey State Uniform Crime Report for 2016, the last bias incident was reported in 2015. There was one incident reported that year. In 2016, three "Black Lives Matter" banners were stolen from outside the Unitarian Universalist Church on Kings Highway in Cherry Hill. The church also received “antagonistic emails” about a public forum discussing race relations it was hosting that February.

Anyone with information about this incident is urged to call the Cherry Hill Police Department at 856-488-7828. Tips may also be submitted anonymously at tips@cherryhillpolice.com or http://cherryhill-nj.com/forms.aspx?FID=84.

See related: Hate Has No Home In Cherry Hill, Sign Drive Organizers Say

Patch file photo by Bryan Littel