Fighting Hate Door To Door Men Collect Signatures, Seek Council’s Help To Counteract Aryan Nations’ Literature

Residents of one of North Idaho’s smaller cities are setting the pace in fighting racism.

Two Rathdrum residents, Duane Nightengale and another man, have gathered about 500 of their neighbors’ signatures to make a statement against hate material that was distributed around Kootenai County - including Rathdrum - last month.

Now they want the City Council to join their crusade.

“We’ve got a small group of people who use violence as a trump card and keep the rest of us hostage,” Nightengale said.

The hate literature was distributed by the Aryan Nations, a white supremacist group.

The city attorney is reviewing Nightengale’s suggestions (see box at right) to determine which ones the city may implement legally without infringing on the Aryan Nations’ right to free speech.

“People need to know that Rathdrum as a city doesn’t condone that type of activity,” City Councilman Mark Worthen said.

He and others worry the Aryan Nations may be attempting to recruit members in Rathdrum.

“I think the important thing with Rathdrum with recruiting is that we take a stand so those groups look elsewhere,” Worthen said.

The city has taken one official step. Mayor Tawnda Bromley attended a rally at North Idaho College last month along with other elected officials in Kootenai County to condemn racism. They spoke out against the barrage of racist literature distributed in the area and against racially motivated harassment by white supremacists.

“The people who have contacted me have said, ‘We don’t want hate in the community,”’ Bromley said.

But the hate the Aryan Nations supports already has scared many in Rathdrum. The man who helped Nightengale gather signatures did not want to be identified publicly for fear of retaliation by white supremacists.

“People are living in tremendous fear,” the man said. “We have something to lose. We have families, we have kids,” he said, adding that he thinks the media too often identify hate-crime victims but not the perpetrators.

“The problem is that we’re identified and they’re not.”

As Nightengale collected signatures door to door in Rathdrum, he encountered the same fear the other man has.

“I was finding a lot of people who would not sign (the petition) because they thought their names would be released,” he said.

But “98 percent of the people we talked to signed and were happy to sign,” Nightengale said.

While he doesn’t want the names of people who signed publicized, “if I had my druthers, I’d send it (the petition) right back to (Aryan Nations founder) Richard Butler and let him revel in the fact that Rathdrum doesn’t want this material in the community.”

, DataTimes MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: Actions to combat racist ideas Residents have proposed six actions the Rathdrum City Council could take to fight hate: Establishing a hate-watch program with a phone number citizens could call to report hate crimes to the police. Holding public meetings with police to learn what citizens can do to help. Adopting a resolution making a statement against racism. Urging local media to fully report on hate activities and publish the names and addresses of hate crime perpetrators. Encouraging local police to attend training on racially motivated crime. Establishing a citizens committee to review city policies on racism and make recommendations.