With the recent mass shootings in Dayton and El Paso, racism being a motive, and the Donald being accused of motivating such individuals to carry out their deadly deeds, one should take note that this week will be the 50th anniversary of a series of murders that took place with the attention of starting an apocalyptic race war.
These murders were the work of the Manson family, carried out by Charles “Tex” Watson, Susan Atkins, and Patricia Krenwinkel (with Linda Kasabian being designated as a lookout). They were ordered by Charles Manson to go to the home of record producer Terry Melcher (whom had earlier snubbed Manson over a recording contract) and kill him. Little did Manson or his followers know that Melcher had moved out of the house and that it was now occupied by film director Roman Polanski and his wife Sharon State (who was eight and a half months pregnant). Polanksi was in Europe working on a film project at the time, while Tate was at home with three friends: Jay Sebring, Wojciech Frykowski, and Abigail Folger.
Tate and her friends were brutally murdered, as Manson ordered his followers to “totally destroy everyone in it, as gruesome as you can.” In addition, the Manson killed Steven Parent, who was visiting the caretaker William Garretson. Garretson (who was living in the guest house on the property) was said to be unaware of the murders until the following morning, when he was taken into custody but eventually cleared of all charges.
The following night, Manson, the original four from the previous night, and Manson family members Leslie Van Houten and Steve “Clem” Grogan went to the residence of supermarket executive Leno LaBianca and his wife Rosemary.
Manson accompanied them because he was dissatisfied with how his followers had carried out the previous night’s murders, and thus wanted “to show them how to do it.” Needless to say, the LaBiancas were also brutally murdered.
In both instances, the Manson family had written messages in the victim’s blood on the residences. In the case of the Tate murders, the word “pig” was written with Sharon Tate’s blood on the front door, whereas in the LaBianca murders, the words “rise” and “death to pigs” were written on the walls while “Helter Skelter” was written on the refrigerator door. In addition, the word “war” was carved into Leno LaBianca’s abdomen.
The purpose of writing such words would, in the mind of Charles Manson, lead people to believe the Black Panthers were responsible for the murders, and thus set off an apocalyptic race war, during which the Manson family would hide out in the desert and be the only white people left on Earth. He presumably believed that Asians, Hispanics, etc. would also be killed off in the process. In the aftermath, Manson was convinced he and his followers would rule the world,
because in his mind, he believed “Blackie never did anything without whitey showing; him how” and “It looks like we’re gonna have to show blackie how to do it.”
Of course, such a race war never happened. Hence, Manson’s plan had failed.
There is little doubt that some liberals will try to politicize the shootings in Dayton and El Paso to play the race card with Trump and to push for stricter gun laws. Hopefully, they will also fail.
