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Police Work To Find Source Of Threatening Letter Sent To CMS Board Member

CHARLOTTE, N.C.,None — The president of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg NAACP is firing back against accusations that his organization is advocating violence against Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education members.

VIDEO: Local NAACP President Disputes Accusations Of Advocating Violence

On Friday, CMS board member Kaye McGarry received a threatening letter in the mail at her home. A detective said the contents of the note would cause concern for a person’s physical well-being.

Police are investigating to find the source of the letter.

On Monday, former Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory said he believes the use of the chant, “No justice, no peace,” is just as much of a threat to CMS board members as the letter McGarry received.

“The comment, ‘No justice, no peace,’ means no justice, violence,” McCrory said. “The opposite of peace is violence.”

The chant was used by local NAACP president Kojo Nantambu at a CMS board meeting.

Eyewitness News took McCrory’s strong accusations to Nantambu.

“It goes to show you how stupid he is, because in the Bible, Christ says, ‘I come not bring peace but to bring a sword,’” he said. “That didn’t mean he came to bring violence. When you say, ‘No justice, no peace,’ it doesn’t mean you’re going to bring violence, it means you’re not going to let things remain just as they are.”

McCrory is encouraging other political and business leaders to speak out against any type of threats against the board’s decision to close 10 schools and make changes at dozens of others.

“You can agree to disagree, but you shouldn’t say, ‘No peace,’” he said.

In response to the threatening letter sent to McGarry, Nantambu said, “I do sympathize with her and I understand because that’s not good and that’s not right but that doesn’t have anything to do with the (NAACP).”

McCrory said, “I know of no direct role, but saying, ‘No justice, no peace,’ is a threat to our community. The letter is a threat to an elected official, which should also not be tolerated,” he said.

Nantambu said his game plan has not changed.

“We’re going to keep saying, ‘No justice, no peace,’ because what the school board has done should not be tolerated,” he said.

Eyewitness News reached out to the group Save our Schools, who are also opponents of the board’s vote to close schools. The group sent an e-mail to Kaye McGarry on Sunday, condemning the threatening letter and calling it repugnant and cowardly. The group also said regardless of their vote, CMS board members should not be intimidated, harassed or mistreated as human beings.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg police are interviewing adults and CMS students about the threatening letter. Police said charges will depend on the suspect and his or her intent. The suspect could also face federal charges for sending the letter through the United States Postal Service.

Previous Stories: November 11, 2010: Board Approves School Closures, Consolidations