GREENSBORO, N.C. – A conservative weekly newspaper has sued the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, contending the racist group is inserting its leaflets in the newspaper and delivering them to residences.
The Rhinoceros Times filed its lawsuit Tuesday, contending the Klan used "unfair and deceptive" trade practices that give the public the impression the Times agrees with the racist outlook of the Klan.
"Some people are going to think it's an advertisement we accepted," said publisher William Hammer. "We would never in a million years, for any amount of money, accept any form of advertisement from an organization like the KKK."
Readers have complained about the leaflets dating back at least six months, Hammer said. The News & Record of Greensboro also has received complaints about Klan literature inserted in editions.
Thomas Robb, who leads the Klan group that is based in Arkansas, ridiculed the lawsuit.
"That is so ludicrous it's pathetic," Robb said. "That lawsuit will go no further than the hot air the guy is using."
Robb said anyone can do what they want with a copy of a newspaper, so long as they don't steal them from a newspaper box.
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