DES MOINES, Iowa - The Des Moines NAACP is asking members of the African American community to "watch out for each other" after suspected racially motivated occurrences took place over several days.
First, a joint meeting of the Des Moines City Council and the city's Civil and Human Rights Commission was cancelled after what's described as a racists, anti-semitic, sexists and pornographic cyber-attack.
Then early Saturday, a 22-year-old black male was assaulted by people he said were white, with one making racist comments.
In a release later Saturday, the Des Moines NAACP advised African American residents and people of African descent to be on "high alert against racist attacks in various forms."
The release made reference to two African American people in Georgia and Louisville, Kentucky who were shot and killed in recent months - Ahmaud Arbrey and Breonna Taylor - and said Des Moines is not immune from the "fatal effects of racism."
It urged the Police Department and city's elected leaders to investigate the two recent events in Des Moines.