By Briana SmithSTAFF WRITER
“Fear,” said Frank Meeink, an ex-skinhead gang recruiter, as he looked out into the eyes of Hofstra students and faculty. “Fear in someone else’s face; I loved that feeling that someone fears me. But why?” he asked. “I feared everything. I feared going home, I feared my parents, I feared my school, I feared I wouldn’t have enough food to eat. Now, someone fears me. I loved it.”
The South Philadelphia native first encountered this love of fear at the age of 13 when a skinhead attacked a man outside of a nightclub. Two years later, a tattoo of a Swastika glowed on the side of his neck, revealing the true devotion and respect he had for this anti-Semitic group. By the time he reached age 18, he became a skinhead leader, neo-Nazi recruiter and the host of a cable access show, “The Reich.”
The struggles he once faced at home – an abusive, alcoholic step-father and a negligent mother – were no longer existent. He received something from the skinheads that he always yearned for: acceptance.
Hofstra University’s Cultural Center invited Meeink to share his transformation from ‘hatred to harmony,’ transitioning from being prejudice to advocating for anti-racism.
On Wednesday, March 11 from 7-9 p.m., students and faculty listened to Meeink’s traumatizing past that led him to his many triumphs today: a noted speaker, author of the “Autobiography of a Recovering Skinhead,” founder of Harmony Through Hockey, an innovative hate-prevention program, and a father and husband who strives to enlighten, open hearts and make a change in this discriminative world.
“I heard him speak the first time when I was a student here at Hofstra,” said Rabbi Lyle Rothman, director of Hofstra University’s Jewish Life and Learning. “I found his message to be truly inspirational which is hatred is never acceptable. We have the power to actually turn that hatred into love if we work hard at it.”
Meeink’s hatred of different races started to subside after serving a three-year sentence in an Illinois prison for aggravated kidnapping, where he befriended a group of African-American men. He planned to continue with the white supremacy movement after prison, but a Jewish man who gave him a job altered his view about the Jewish population.
“My Swastika was blazing at him everyday, I had my neo-Nazi boots on, and I looked over at him and I was just so grateful to have this human being in my life,” Meeink said with a smile forming on his face. “I was so embarrassed of my beliefs. When I got out of his truck [after work], I had to make a decision, and I said, ‘I’m done. I can’t do this anymore.’”
Now, Meeink teaches those surrounding him how to end the animosity.
“The solution to racism and hatred is empathy,” Meeink told the audience. “I think I had empathy when I was a child, but I gave that up for acceptance into a group, and so when I started to gain that back and started to look and care for others, I just noticed my life was better if I helped somebody out.”
Meeink’s journey, knowledge and advice affected many of the students’ lives.
“He emphasizes the point that we need to love and accept everyone regardless of the color of their skin,” said Alexander Pineda, senior journalism major.
“It was important for him to talk to Hofstra because a lot of students come to college looking to find themselves, and most times, we end up losing our true essence,” said Joie Johnson-Walker, first-year journalism graduate student. “We try to conform to what everyone else wants instead of what we need as individuals. “
Meeink left the audience with one last message, reciting a metaphor about raising baby elephants. He said, the older elephants need to teach the babies how to behave properly to prevent them from living chaotic, disastrous and malignant lives.
“Your job is to be the older elephant and go back to your younger family members, friends and show them how to act correctly,” said Meeink. “We can’t give up on society. We need to continue to show love and be there.”
