NEW HOPE – "Steven" drove five hours in his 1981 Red Chevy Camaro to attend Saturday's white supremacist rally here. His objective: "Showing faggots everywhere that they can't take our rights away." "Theresa" rode up from nearby Philadelphia in a bus chartered by her organization, Grassroots Queers, to join in the anti-fascism counter-rally. Her objective: "Exposing the Klan as a threat to everyone, specifically gays and lesbians." Neither Theresa nor Steven, who would not give their real names, got close enough to do anything but yell slogans or wave fists. And many of the demonstrators and counter-demonstrators at Gaybash '93, an anti-gay, white supremacist rally held in Washington Crossing State Park, said they had similar experiences at the rally. At least 300 state troopers in riot gear sealed off all entrances to the park and carefully monitored every move the 60-some neo-Nazis, skinheads and klansmen and their 300-plus anti-fascist counterparts made. The police effort ensured that, except for a few isolated incidents where counter-demonstrators clashed with police, the day remained relatively non-violent. Anyone arriving late, or not affiliated with a registered organization, was not allowed near the wooded area where the white supremacists rallied nor were they allowed to enter the North Gate clearing where the bulk of the counterdemonstrators were assembled. Among the counterprotesters were gay and lesbian groups, anarchists, feminists and University students. The Lesbian Gay Bisexual Alliance were among those bused in for the event. Police made sure the groups remained separate throughout, but at one point the two sides faced off across the Delaware Canal as chants of "Death, Death, Death to the Klan" mixed with the Neo-Nazis' "Sieg Heils." "We were all shouting insults and slogans when all of a sudden some guys started throwing rocks and sticks at the neo-Nazis," said Carl, a 1993 University graduate, who rallied with the counter-demonstrators. "There was a lot of bad energy." He added that mounted police clashed with the counter-demonstrators, describing police behavior as "abusive." After about an hour, the white supremacists, most of them sporting army boots, black bomber jackets and swastikas, were escorted out of the park by police. Protesters on both sides said they were dissatisfied with the police. "We came here to demonstrate peacefully and the cops have done nothing but push us around," Theresa said. The South Philadelphia native added she was seriously concerned with the threat posed by the white supremacists. "I grew up around here and I can tell you, there is a lot of hidden racism and homophobia," she said. "They're a bunch of inbred slobs who probably had to go to school to evolve their thumbs, but they hold a lot more power than people think." Steven also said he was unhappy with police actions. "A lot of us drove down for the rally, and the cops won't even let us in," he said. "Our rights are being violated – why do the faggots get to rally and we don't?" He added that he and his friends simply wanted to peacefully attend the rally, but were rebuffed by the state troopers who refused to explain themselves. "This used to be a free country – now some have more rights than others," he said. "I'm a peaceful person who just hates homosexuals, but this government might just drive me to violence." At the end of the rally, Carl said he had mixed feelings about what he had been through. "I'm glad I showed my support but I disagree with a lot of the violence," he said.
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