Bill Berkowitz:

http://blog.buzzflash.com/contributors/2159

However, there is one issue that appears to raise the hackles of Tea Party participants and sympathizers and could stymie its growth: the role that race plays in the movement. Tea Party events have become a safe haven for racists who carry racist anti-Obama signs. People of color have stayed away from Tea Party activities. Members of white nationalist organizations participate in, and view the movement as a fertile recruiting ground. And, questions about how much the tea partiers overlaps with the anti-immigration movement might be answered when an immigration reform bill is taken up next year.