A noose was discovered on a light pole over the weekend by a musician who plays with Lyle Lovett and His Large Band, which prompted authorities in Montana’s largest city to look into the incident as a notice of a possible hate crime.
Noose as a symbol of hate (Source: Rappler)
A narration of the Witness Who Saw the Noose
Trombonist Charles Rose said that on Sunday morning when going outside to retrieve something from the band’s tour bus in Billings, he noticed a noose hanging from a light pole. On Sunday night, Lovett and his band gave a free outdoor performance in the heart of Billings. On his Facebook page, where he also posted a picture of the noose, Rose said on Sunday, “I don’t recall seeing it when we first arrived this morning.” “Scary. Needless to say, I removed it. Rose later filed a police report. When The Associated Press asked him for comment on Tuesday via Facebook, he did not react right away.
Bill Cole, the mayor of Billings, spoke about it during Monday night’s city council session. The city council, police department, and city leaders should take the matter very seriously he stated. Cole added that despite their best efforts, police have not been able to locate any security footage or anyone who saw the noose being fastened to the light pole.
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Hate Crime Wasn’t New in the Town
Nearly 30 years ago, the city of Billings banded together to fight racist attacks. Painters’ union members covered racist vandalism on a Native American family’s home, and members of various religious groups guarded a Black church after skinheads disrupted services.
When anti-Semitic flyers were put up close to a Jewish synagogue, Jewish cemetery headstones were tipped over, and a 6-year-old boy, the son of a Jewish rabbi, had his bedroom window broken with a brick, the city came together once more.
The Billings Gazette published a full-page menorah in December 1993 that readers may display in their windows as a sign of solidarity for the city’s Jewish citizens. The phrase “Not In Our Town” was placed on a sports goods store’s reader board, giving birth to a movement that received media attention and eventually became the subject of a made-for-TV movie. It is still operating as a non-profitable organization with the mission to “stop hate, address bullying, and build safe, inclusive communities for all.”
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