I went to vote today in Georgia USA. People showed up wearing bed sheets over them. What is this supposed to communicate exactly??

  • Greg Clarke@lemmy.caEnglish
    0·
    15 days ago

    This is a bit of hyperbole. If there where trying to intimidate voters they wouldn’t dress up like ghosts. Stay vigilant but didn’t label everything as a conspiracy, some people are just stupid.

    • xmunk@sh.itjust.works
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      15 days ago

      I disagree, masked people at a voting place carries an implicit threat of violence… this may be some dumb teenagers or it may be crazy sov cit folks… either way their presence absolutely could scare off people intending to vote.

      People who are obscuring their identity are usually doing so to avoid notice or repercussions for their actions… I think it’s reasonable to expect people in a voting location to be clearly visible and recognizable.

      • Greg Clarke@lemmy.caEnglish
        0·
        15 days ago

        I think it’s reasonable to expect people in a voting location to be clearly visible and recognizable

        I agree (in most cases). I’m arguing that these folks are more likely stupid than malicious.

        • xmunk@sh.itjust.works
          0·
          15 days ago

          I’m uncertain, but it’s certainly quite possible these folks were trolling. My main point was that it’s not as much about what the folks in sheets intended as much as it’s about how they’re perceived. Elections are pretty important and people are pretty sensitive right now so even if these folks did it for the lulz they may have actually intimidated and suppressed some votes.

    • Catoblepas@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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      15 days ago

      “The law against voter intimidation doesn’t specify specific conduct that is illegal. It specifies that intimidating voters is illegal,” Morales-Doyle [director the Voting Rights Program at the Brennan Center for Justice] said. “And so really, whatever form it might take, if the result is that a person feels uncomfortable exercising their right to vote, then it violates the law against voter intimidation.”

      Even if this wasn’t obviously reminiscent of the KKK, just seeing someone hiding their identity while pretending to be a government official is unquestionably enough to make someone feel intimidated and that it’s an unsafe place to vote.

        • DandomRude@lemmy.worldEnglish
          0·
          15 days ago

          I know. I did not downvote and I really don’t get why people feel the need to. Your comment is completely accurate - it makes no sense to impute any intentions to these people in disguise. My only point was that the people in the photo should not appear like that for the election in any case.

    • apfelwoiSchoppen@lemmy.world
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      15 days ago

      Ghosts in the south look an awful lot like KKK outside of a voting place. Do not mistake this due to the time of year and give this the benefit of the doubt.

    • Bonskreeskreeskree@lemmy.world
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      15 days ago

      If you dont live in America, stfu. We don’t care about your opinion on how Americans are acting towards other Americans. Your small exposure to the population means nothing.

    • Rhaedas@fedia.io
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      15 days ago

      Intimidation comes in all forms. Let’s just say that this is not normal behavior around a polling site, and given it’s inside it’s definitely past barriers for anything beyond casting your own vote. Toss them out, even if they are just lost early Halloweeners.

    • 🇰 🌀 🇱 🇦 🇳 🇦 🇰 ℹ️@yiffit.netEnglish
      0·
      15 days ago

      If there where trying to intimidate voters they wouldn’t dress up like ghosts.

      Maybe they watched too much South Park. Dressing as ghosts and burning lowercase Ts on lawns is how they tried to scare the black rich family away in an episode.