Batt Sends A Clear Message To Racists

Like every other community, Sandpoint has problems. A bypass needs to be built. An orderly plan for growth should be drafted. Taxes are too high.

Unlike most other communities, however, Sandpoint has been handed a monumental problem not of its own making that won’t go away. Because a mountain man refused to come down from Ruby Ridge and because one of the 20th century’s most controversial figures moved there, it is viewed by many as a haven for racists.

High-profile supremacists and militiamen elsewhere in North Idaho and in nearby northwestern Montana also feed that image - though, as Idaho Gov. Phil Batt correctly noted last week, the majority of Sandpoint residents are “peaceful and fair-minded.”

Fortunately, Batt isn’t dismissing the matter with a few cheap words of condolence. Sandpoint’s problem is Idaho’s problem. The negative publicity attracted by Randy Weaver’s shootout near Naples, the presence of Mark Fuhrman and ex-Ku Klux Klan leader Louis Beam in and near Sandpoint and Richard Butler’s compound near Hayden Lake cast a shadow over North Idaho, threatening minorities, scaring tourists and hurting business recruitment.

We commend Batt for heeding his Economic Stimulus Committee’s recommendation that he take a strong stand against racism. He didn’t have to be nudged far - human rights always have been dear to Batt.

Batt plans to launch his counteroffensive against racism by visiting Sandpoint soon. His message is crystal clear: Racists “should consider moving elsewhere.” Also, he said he would kick former L.A. police detective Fuhrman out of the state if he could.

The statement about Fuhrman goes too far. A man and his family have a right to live anywhere they want - as long as they behave themselves, which the Fuhrmans seem inclined to do. But Batt’s sharp words send the kind of message racists need to hear from the state’s elected officials, high and low: Idaho won’t tolerate intolerance.

Sandpoint Mayor Ron Chaney missed a golden opportunity to do just that when the nation’s media came calling during the O.J. Simpson trial. Instead, he unabashedly supported Fuhrman, a personal friend, and sicked police on reporters loitering in front of the Fuhrman home.

Mayor-elect David Sawyer surely will send a different message when he assumes office. He helped found the Bonner County Task Force on Human Rights and knows that racism flourishes when it’s left unchallenged.

Sandpoint, with leadership from Batt and Sawyer, no longer appears willing to ignore racism.

, DataTimes The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = D.F. Oliveria/For the editorial board