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Special Olympics returns with smiles and determination, ➤ page 5
Newnan Strong: Too late for hate
PHOTO BY CLAY NEELY
Counter-protesters gather on Greenville Street during the recent National Socialist Movement rally. By 6 p.m., all crowds had dissipated and downtown Newnan was a proverbial ghost town with only a few restaurants still open for business. There was no property damage reported and only 10 arrests, according to Assistant City Manager Hasco Craver.
NTH STAFF REPORTS news@newnan.com
By the time the National Socialist Movement got to Greenville Street Park, two unity services had already proclaimed Newnan a place
of unity and love. The NSM were met by a dominating police presence, with over 700 officers represented by 42 agencies, according to Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Vernon
Keenan. Snipers sat atop buildings, officers behind clear shields lined the historic court square, while deputies a nd SWAT tea m members patrolled the streets. Several dozen
officers with GSP stood along Greenville Street between the barriers separating the NSM from the counter-protesters. Boos and shouts from counter-protesters behind the fences along Green-
ville Street did little to dissuade NSM Commander Jeff Schoep from br i ng i ng h i s messa ge to a small group of people – mainly other NSM or ga n i zers a nd members of the media. The
rally, scheduled for 3 p.m., began around 4. “ We sta nd toget her. We will not back down. We will not be silenced,” Schoep yelled from the
STRONG, page 2
80 years of history
PHOTO BY DEBBY DYE
PHOTO BY SARAH CAMPBELL
Lisa Steffes said she felt she had to come and protest against white supremacy on April 21. She wasn’t worried about her safety, thanks to a strong police prescence.
Peace through strength: Love prevails
BY SARAH FAY CAMPBELL sarah@newnan.com T houg h loca ls were asked to stay away from downtown Newnan while the National Socialist Movement rallied – and many agreed that staying away was t he best way to show their distaste for white s up r e m a c i s t s – s o m e Cowetans wanted to go d ow n tow n a n d m a k e their opposition to the group known. Lisa Steffes said that a close fr iend of hers was strongly urging people to stay away f r o m d ow n tow n . B u t staying home wasn’t for her. She sa id she u nderst a nd s t h at , for some p e ople , t he ne o -Na z i ra lly didn’t di rectly
a f fe c t t hem . B ut a s a lesbian, she said it does affect her. NSM claims t h at homo s ex u a l s , a s wel l a s a nyone who isn’t wh ite, ca n not be citizens. Steffes sa id she had to go and take a stand. Her fr iend “chose t he way of peace a nd prayer. I chose this confrontation,” she said. Her friend, and many others, chose to express t h e i r l o ve a n d u n i t y in cha l k at Greenville Street Pa rk t he prev ious night. Steffes sa id bot h ways – sending prayers and staying home, and com i n g to p e acef u l ly protest, are valid. “ I respec t her decision a nd she respects mine,” she said.
Steffes sa id ig noring white supremacists won’t ma ke t hem go away. “They just inf iltrate even further if you let them,” she said. With only a few dozen NSM members attending the rally, “they kind of w a s te d t h e i r t i m e com i n g ,” s a id M a rtez Hayes-Zenta rious, who m a rched out side t he secured a rea w it h the NoNa ziNew na n Coalition and protested inside the secured area. “Bel ieve it or not , they only helped Newnan come stronger together, versus thinking it was going to conquer and divide us,”
PEACE, page 3
Father Henry Atem of St. George Catholic Church holds the chalice aloft during the celebration of the Eucharist at the Thanksgiving Mass at Oak Hill Cemetery. Assisting him are Deacon Steve Swope, left, and Deacon Steve Beers.
ST. GEORGE CATHOLIC CHURCH GATHERS AT CEMETERY NTH STAFF REPORTS
news@newnan.com St . G e or ge Cat hol ic C hu rc h i s com memo rating some milestones t his yea r, a nd t he celebration bega n w it h a gat her i ng at Oa k H i l l Cemetery on April 21. Some loca l events scheduled for April 21 were cancelled because of a rally sponsored by the neo-Na zi Nationa l Socia list Movement that afternoon. T he parishioners of St. George, however, persevered and celebrated t he blessi ng s of t hei r church and its history. A M a s s of T h a n k s g iv i n g , c om m e m or ating 80 yea rs since the first Catholic Mass was celebr ate d i n Cowet a C o u n t y, w a s h e l d a t t h e c e m e t e r y. T h e Mass was celebrated
o n t h e M a n s o u r pl o t at Oak Hill where Ellis and Eff ie Mansour are buried. It w a s i n t h e M a n sour’s living room that the f irst Mass was celebrated in Coweta. Among the participants at the Than ksgiving Mass were members of the Mansour, Carrasco and Norman families whose parents and grandparents attended that very first Mass and constituted the nascent Catholic community in the Newnan area. Sat u rday ’s M a ss , wh ich lasted about a n hour, was celebrated by Fr. Hen r y Atem , pa stor of St. George Catholic Church on Roscoe Road. He was assisted by Fr. Alvaro Avendano a nd Deacons Steve B eers , B en Gross a nd
S te ve Swo p e . D u r i n g the homily, Atem eulogized these hera lds of t h e C a t h ol i c f a i t h i n Newnan. “They were not renow ned statesmen or p ol it ic i a n s ,” A tem st ated . “ T hey d id not w ield a ny si g n i f ic a nt a mou nt of power or authority. They were a simple couple who lived a simple a nd ordina r y life. However, for them the Catholic faith was t h e fo u n d a t i o n of a n integrated life.” When Ellis and Eff ie Mansour came to Newnan, there was not a Catholic church here. They attended Mass in At l a nt a , L a G r a n ge or Griffin until the bishop granted permission for
HISTORY, page 3