In the wake of the cross burnings that marred Durham last week, there is going to be a city-wide Unity Rally on Sunday, June 5th at 4 pm. The location is still being finalized. The rally is being put on by the Durham Human Relations Commission. We'll keep you posted as we learn more details.

As for the crime itself, the Durham People's Alliance -- a city-wide progressive advocacy group -- has stepped up to offer a $1,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest (I guess city officials hadn't done it already?).

As the same news story notes, the national KKK has denied involvement (of course), which has led some to continue speculating about whether they were really involved, or if this was an isolated "prank." But as Rev. George Allison noted,

"Crosses are not burned for a prank or recreation. They are burned to send a message," he said. "It is a message of hate. It is a message of lack of tolerance. ... Maybe the [Ku Klux] Klan is not responsible. We don't know. But whoever did it was trying to get a reaction from the community."