‘It’s deplorable, it’s sickening’: Civil rights activists speak out as eighth noose found at Amazon warehouse

Symbol of America’s racist past found again in online shop warehouse with authorities hinting it is a hate crime

8 nooses have been found at Amazon warehouse since April (AP)

An eighth noose was uncovered at an Amazon warehouse in Connecticut, which led the NAACP to condemn the on-site racism taking place despite increased security measures.

The president of the state’s chapter of the anti-racism group Scott X. Esdaile spoke out against it,  “We have a serious problem in American and it hasn’t gone away. It’s deplorable. It’s sickening. It’s a sick mindset that Black people have to fight against.”

The noose was discovered on Wednesday, the same day Mr Esdaile was planned to discuss with staff the racism problems they were encountering at the Windsor warehouse.

Following the seventh noose being found last week, Amazon shut the warehouse temporarily to ramp up security measures, and did so again when the FBI searched the premises after the latest noose was uncovered, the online retailer said in a statement.

Kelly Nantel, a representative said, “Hate, racism or discrimination have no place in our society and are certainly not tolerated in any Amazon workplace.  We will continue to work with all levels of law enforcement as well as our development partners, to hold the perpetrators accountable and ensure that all members of our community feel valued, respected and safe.”

Local police are believed to be collaborating with the FBI and deemed the incident a “potential” hate crime.

The initial noose was uncovered in April, and authorities are offering a $100,000 reward to the people behind them.

“Racist provocation of the worst type,” Governor Ned Lamont said of the Amazon incident, before saying he was in talks with Amazon and expressing his concern about the situation.

“We’re doing everything we can from a security point of view, everything we can from a law enforcement point of view. But I can’t change people’s hearts and it just breaks my heart that this is still going on.”

The racist history of the noose is long, Jack Schluer, an associate professor at Denison University explained to CNN, "The noose always means much more than a knot in a rope.” he said, describing it as “violent”.

"Lynching is not the same as private murder ... There must be some evidence that a community supported the act – either actively or through their collective inaction,” he said.

It is believed that 4,7000 people died by lynching between 1882 and 1968, a figure considered to be conservative. It was used by the hate group Ku Klux Klan.

The Independent has reached out to Amazon for further comment.