Rainn Wilson shared a frightening photo of a noose left in the front yard of his friend's home. The Office actor posted a lengthy caption to his Instagram reminding his followers that hate can be found anywhere and that the era of lynching wasn't as far in the past as we like to paint it.
"Granted, this is a pretty lame noose. Might have been made by some local kids or something. Who knows," he wrote. "But the fact is it is as strong a symbol of racial hatred, violence and oppression as a Swastika. Many folks are in denial about the extent to which racism exists in our country in 2019."
Wilson went on to explain that his friend doesn't have to go far into his own family tree to find examples of relatives who were slaves. And he has to do even less digging to find racialized hate in the United States. It's literally right outside their front door.
"Jamey’s great grandfather was an ACTUAL SLAVE on a plantation and was regularly beaten there. That’s not that long ago. Great grandfather," he wrote. "And now, his niece gets to be reminded of what hate looks like. Right in her own front yard in suburban LA."
