Within a recent, two-day period, Indianapolis media reported on two separate, ugly incidents. In Greenwood, racist flyers were distributed on cars parked at the Greenwood Park Mall; in Carmel, anti-Semitic tracts were thrown on driveways in selected neighborhoods.

There are some accusations that evoke a response of "Oh, that can’t be true." The ICLU gets regular complaints from African-Americans that they are subjected to traffic stops for no reason, and it is tempting for a white lawyer to dismiss those…