Outrage erupts as police allow neo-Nazis to protest outside Georgia synagogue

[ShazzieB]

20. Skokie, yes, I remember it well!

You are correct that Nazis once planned a march in the Chicago suburb of Skokie, IL, and courts ruled that the march needed to be allowed in the name of free speech. However, Rockwell was not involved. (He was deceased by then, shot and killed by an ex-member of his own group in 1967).

The Skokie march was instigated by Francis Joseph Collin, founder of the National Socialist Party of America. When Collin's group announced plans to march in Skokie in the late 70s, they were met with vehement objections from residents of the community, which was 40% Jewish, including a large number of Holocaust survivors.

Court cases ensued, resulting in rulings that favored the Nazis being allowed to march in Skokie, but they ended up marching in Chicago instead, for reasons I can't recall. It may have been due to the Nazis' fears for their own safety, but I can't swear to that. What I do know is that there was a huge uproar in Skokie, that I'm pretty sure included threats of violence (understandably so, imo).

The whole episode spawned the establishment of a small Holocaust Museum in Skokie, which eventually grew into the well-known and respected Illinois Holocaust Museum. So in a way, you could say the Nazis' plans backfired on them!