Supremacist concert protested

September 3, 2001

By NANCY LUNA
The Orange County Register


Anaheim A boisterous crowd of 40 demonstrators gathered outside an Anaheim club Sunday protesting a concert featuring white supremacist bands.

Cries of "Losers" and "Nazi music has to go" filled the air outside The Shack on Kraemer Boulevard. Protesters included Libertarians, the Jewish Defense League and black-clad, hooded anarchists.

"People shouldn't be profiteering from this stuff," said Michael Novick, a protest organizer and a member of the group Anti-Racist Action.

The demonstration ended without incident as a small contingent of police watched from across the street.

About 80 people filed past demonstrators, kept back by Shack bouncers.

"We may not have the popular opinion, but we have the right to freedom of speech," said Tommy Romero, the promoter who booked the bands.

Shack owner John Terbay said he did not support white supremacy, but supported the bands' right to play. His club hosts a variety of acts, from hip-hop to heavy metal.

Several concert-goers criticized demonstrators.

"They are here to stop a political voice - that's un-American," said Christopher Johnson of Newport Beach, grand dragon for the state Ku Klux Klan. "They are embarrassing themselves."