South Lincoln Residents Receive Racial Flyers

By: Risa Avila

Updated: Mon 8:46 AM, May 03, 2004

South Lincoln residents woke Sunday morining to find a letter on the driveway left by a group called National Alliance, blaming blacks for crime in the area.

It was one week ago when Nebraska soccer player Jenna Cooper was shot and killed outside her rental home. Lucky Iromuanya, who is black, was charged with second-degree murder in the shooting. Iromuanya is accused of firing a shot that hit Cooper, who was standing nearby.

Jodi Ryba, a south Lincoln resident who received the flyer says, "We were really scared. We live here in this area because we like it, we believe in it and it really scared us."

The flyer urges locals to take action against diversity in the neighborhood. Instead, the flyer prompted some residents to notify authorities. "We called the police," says Ryba.

Ryba says she is outraged about they flyer. "I've alway stayed in Lincoln because it was not that there's not racial differences and everything, it was just never the problems of violence or anything that I would be fearful of."

We spoke with National Alliance Chief Operations Officer, Shaun Walker over the phone and he said, "We want to inform the public about the truth of interracial violence in America."

Ryba fears that letters like this will frighten her children.
"I have a three year old and I don't want them to be exposed to anything like this. We have to be on top of it to protect them." She also doesn't like what this could start. "This is something that can cause a lot of problems." It's a feeling Ryba says her neighbors share.

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