Shooting
from page A2
building bombs, but they are
building bombers, creating
scooters," Potok said. "Hale is
spying he's not responsible, but
Bale is a hypocrite."
; Across the country, members
df the church have been convict
ell of murder, beatings and con
spiracies to bomb NAACP
offices and black churches,
rtolice in Sacramento, Calif., are
a) so investigating whether mem
bers are behind the arson last
mOnth of three synagogues.
*;Hale, an aspiring lawyer, said
purges church members to stay
within the law. He said blaming
the shootings on his group is like
blaming the Pope for abortion
clinic bombings.
' ?
But a recent Sacramento
.(Calif.) Bee newspaper story
quoted him on the synagogue
arsons as saying, "Certainly
there is nothing immoral about
torching the den of the serpent."
The World Church of the
Creator dates back to 1973,
when it was formed by Ben
Klassen, a Florida real estate
man of Ukrainian birth who
became wealthy after inventing
an electric can opener.
Klassen wrote tracts of
explosive racism, urging whites
to push blacks, Jews and other,
"mud races" off the face of the
planet.
After one
group mem
ber was
convicted
of beating a
black sailor
to death in
a Florida
parking lot,
K lassen
committed
suicide, ?--?? ^ ?
swallowing Smiih
four bottles
of sleeping pills in 1993.
*
The church seemed to disap
pear until the appearance of
Hale, who was made "Pontifex
Maximus" - an ancient Roman
title meaning Supreme Leader -?
in 1995 on a Montana ranch.
Hate-group monitors say they
believe the church has grown
under Hale's recruiting efforts
and use of the Internet.
While the church is thought
to have 46 chapters and several
hundred active members, thou
sands more are believed to be
associated with the group and its
anti-Semitic, racist rhetoric,
Potok said.
Hatewatch.org, a monitor of
hate sites on the Internet,
reports that the World Church
of the Creator'has the fastest
growing Internet presence
among racist groups today, with
pages dedicated to recruiting
women and children.
"What you'll hear from Matt
Hale is that the World Church of
the Creator does not condone
violence," said Hatewatch.org
founder and director David
Goldman.
''But read his Web site," he
said. "You'll read enough to see
why someone may take it upon
himself to get a gun and kill
minorities." .
For his part, Hale said one
motive for Smith's shooting
spree may have been a decision
last week by an Illinois state'
hearing panel to reject Hale's
application for a law license!
Smith had testified for Hale
before that board in April.
"Our number one goal is to
straighten out the white man's
thinking," he told the panel.
"We're the new minority being
crushed left and right."
Smith admitted he had "con
sidered violent acts to achieve
racial goals, but Hale counseled
me to act peacefully."
To you, it's a new logo. To us, it's a new
.
^^
? . ?
? ? * t ? ^,
\ , . ? ' - ^ ? ?
By now, you've probably noticed the change. No doubt you've seen our new signs. Or maybe you've spotted the new logo on our AlMs.
NationsBank has become Bank of America.
For our customers, it's little more than a name change. You'll keep the same accounts, the same account numbers, even the same PIN
numbers. You can still bank at the same banking centers, drive-ups and ATMs. You can still reach us online, on the phone or face-to-face.
When you do, you'll also notice how excited we are. After all, Bank of America is a brand-new bank with an exciting future. To us, it's
more than a new name. It's a new beginning.
Bank of America. ^
Member FD*C