Sheriff’s officials monitoring unconfirmed rumors of possible KKK rally in Lancaster

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is aware of rumors on social media that the Ku Klux Klan will stage a rally in Lancaster on Friday, but officials say they have not been able to confirm that any such event is planned.

“We do not take any ‘rumors’ lightly and have been looking into these posts throughout [the] day,” officials with the Lancaster Sheriff’s Station wrote in a statement Thursday evening. “At this time, we are unable to confirm the validity of a rally. We encourage our residents to post responsibly.”

Lancaster City Clerk Kathleen Stenback said Thursday she also was unaware of any planned KKK rallies.

“The city of Lancaster has not received any permit applications,” she wrote in an email.

The posts in question, which began to spread in earnest Thursday, indicated that the KKK was planning to rally at 7 p.m. Friday in “Lancaster City Park.”

The source of that information appears to be a screenshot of an uncredited text message.

Both the timing of the rumored rally — on Juneteenth, a commemoration of the day in 1865 when enslaved people of Texas learned slavery had been abolished — and the recent death of Robert Fuller, a 24-year-old Black man found hanging from a tree near City Hall in neighboring Palmdale, further fueled online speculation.

At least one social media post said the Lancaster Sheriff’s Station had confirmed the Klan’s purported plans, but law enforcement officials said that was inaccurate.

Anyone with additional information is asked to contact the Sheriff’s Station at (661) 948-8466.