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Uploaded by zeme65 May 24, 2011 at 11:35PM EDT
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![Virtu A week ago, New Braunfels grandmother Mary Alice Altorfer had never heard of YouTube. Now she's a hot topic on one of the most influential Web sites in America. By Friday, her reaction to an ostensibly racist piece of pop culture had attracted more than 130,000 hits, or viewers She also has been the victim of an online and telephone attack known as a posted on YouTube.com in response to the controversyweek by a sign outside her neighborhood pool depicting a black over New Braunfels womanman with a large Afro haircut. The homemade sign bears the Mary Alice Altorfer and a flyer words "Pool's Closed," and appeared just a day after Altorfer's Altorfer, who has two biracial grandchildren, was outraged this visiting grandchildren, ages 6 and 8, went for a swim When the outspoken grandmother contacted a string of media OU networking group called Anonymous quickly began to surface in Altorfer's world. Online, the sign Altorfer says targeted her family is technically an "avatar" to represent Web users and it doesnt carry radist undertones, members say, because it's simply in reference to an Internet prank. er on During daytime hours, the calls to Altorfer come literally every minute or so. All are from men most from private or out-of- area numbers, or routed through international operators. Some attempt to explain the Web group, but most are fragmented- soundin Some are sexual, or misogynist. One man uses the same epithet several times, then simply hangs up. Another calls Altorfer "a The origin of the 'Pool's Closed' image depicting an African American with an Afro is an image from our Internet 'crusade' to protest racism in the online game 'Habbo Hotel," an e-mailer with the pseudonym Patriot9000 told the Herald-Zeitung. "The (moderators) in this game automatically ban players with easily identifiable African American features such as the afro and dark skin. [On July 10], we decided to start our protest in real life." Altorfer "has become a roadblock in our quest for equality Patriot9000 wrote. "This is the reason she is the target of prank Altorfer's neighbors also reported threatening phone calls from the group, and one couple says they received more than 30 in "It's this whole nasty Internet thing," Altorfer said Friday, her words overridden by the shrill ring of her kitchen phone. "I don't even know if it's about me and the kids anymore." A YouTube spokesperson said the Web site is policed by its community "Users flag content that they feel is inappropriate. Once flagged, content is reviewed by our staff and usually removed from the system within minutes if it violates our Community Guidelines," the said. we let all users know they can choose whether they want to let people comment on their videos. If someone leaves a comment on their video that is mean or bothers them, they can always delete the comment. Another option we give our users is to moderate comments, which means that comments can be approved before they can appear on the site. YouTube will also terminate the accounts of people who repeatedly harass other In recent years, Anonymous has staged raids- a coordinated attempt to crash a Web site's server- on Habbo, which features a virtual hotel area with a swimming pool. Some users like Patriot9000 say the "Pool's Closed" slogan relates to a 2006 Web coup when hundreds of people, all bearing the likeness of the black man on the sign, managed to shut down Habbo's But from Altorfer's perspective, the message harks back to segregation-era racism, and to protests by young black men who actually carried posters with the words "Pool's Closed." One recent caller, in fact, claims he saw a now-defunct chat forum in which a user asked for help "getting rid of (racial slur) in my subdivision pool"-at which point another user suggested Altorfer has filed police reports about the signs and the phone calls, but the poster itself doesn't constitute a crime, according to New Braunfels Police Sgt. Mike Penshorn. And while the calls may be harassment, he said, they're difficult to pinpoint, much Penshorn wouldn't reveal on Friday whether the Web aspect of Altorfer's case has prompted much investigation, but he did say the first sign yielded "quite a bit of research to determine its origin. We are aware of the postings that have been online and Tracing calls is ultimately the job of the district attorney's office, Penshom added, though he wouldnt say whether any part of the case has been turned over to District Attorney Geoff Barr Barr said Friday he wasnt aware of Altorfer's case being passed "If they subpoena for phone numbers, it's going to take quite awhile to get numbers back anyway," Penshorn said, adding that ones coming from outside this jurisdiction or outside the state would be very difficult to p te Some cross-jurisdictional crimes are handled by the Federal Bureau of Investigations- but according to an FBI spokesman in San Antonio, a complainant or victim must suffer "significant loss" before the bureau can step in In the meantime, Penshorn said, Altorfer's only course of action may be to change her phone number. And as to whether she's in danger, he said, "we have no reason to believe she is. Technology columnist Bill Rix said Friday that Anonymous' entanglement with Altorfer "should be taken with a grain of salt," as should "any Internet group primarily run by the audience, which is traditionally male. Because it seems they have no perpetuated, unified cause and because of the demographic the group is constructed of, the most base, hateful, ruthless things will come to pass," Rix said. A second sign posted Thursday depicted a caricature of Altorfer herself, and as of Friday, her grandchildren were on their way home to California. Their visit wasn't cut short, exactly, but “their father is worried about the kids," Altorfer said. TIMELINE . Sunday: Mary Alice Altorfer first sees flyer she thinks is racist. . Monday: Altorfer files police report and contacts the media. . Tuesday: Story broadcast on local TV news, begins to circulate on Web; Altorfer starts receiving harassing phone calls at home. . Wednesday: Second flyer depicting Altorfer posted at pool; files police report about phone harassment. . Thursday: Neighbors report receiving threatening phone calls irc dirl](https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/masonry/000/126/014/Poolsclosednewsarticle.gif "Poolsclosednewsarticle.gif")
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Uploaded May 24, 2011 at 11:35PM EDT
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