Ken Parker is a 37-year-old Navy veteran and political science major at the University of North Florida who hopes to earn his degree and go on to law school.
He’s also a neo-Nazi and a grand dragon of the Ku Klux Klan, and the university has no idea what to do about him.
For a long time, Parker’s classmates didn’t know he was a KKK member. But when he was featured on the cover of a local magazine in October, one of his classmates recognized him from history class.
Weeks later, a social media conflict between Parker and members of the UNF Students for a Democratic Society led to a Facebook post that got Parker suspended from school.
“It is okay to be WHITE,” Parker wrote. “Let SDS and the other clowns come at me. I will shut them down!! F— the BLM BS. I am WHITE and Proud, and these queer balls have yet to confront me on campus.”
He probably would have gotten by with no issues if the text was all there was to the post. But, he also included a photo of himself, displaying swastika tattoos and holding a rifle.
The university cancelled some classes after Parker’s post, and increased the police presence on campus due to what some perceived as a threat against SDS and Black Lives Matter.
Parker was suspended from school, pending an investigation. He appealed, and the suspension was lifted, with one stipulation: He would be required to take classes remotely for his own safety, and that of the university community.
There are several issues to be sorted out. Can the university keep Parker from campus based on his Facebook post? Was his post specific enough to constitute a violent threat?
UNF president John Delaney is in a difficult position as well. If he allows Parker back on campus, and a violent incident does occur, his job could be on the line. However, even without a formal suspension, UNF is on shaky legal ground as to whether they can force him to take remote courses.
While all that is pending, Parker intends to continue his studies and earn his degree, so he can go to law school. He has a very specific type of case he’d like to take on.
“I would like to be a lawyer that stands up for white civil rights and black-on-white crime,” Parker said.
His next disciplinary hearing on campus is in December.
(H/T Vice News)
