Hate Mail Prompts Bonner County To Action Commissioners, Sandpoint Council Plan To Denounce Aryan Propaganda

Hate can take a hike, community leaders are saying this week.

Bonner County commissioners and the Sandpoint City Council will consider resolutions to denounce a hate mail campaign that recently has jolted area residents.

The resolutions were drawn up separately by elected officials eager to wipe out the image that North Idaho is a haven for racists.

“That’s the only thing we can do is take a stand and denounce it,” said Commissioner Larry Allen, who was drafting a county resolution Tuesday. Allen also is seeking re-election.

Last week, the Aryan Nations mailed about 3,000 videos to homes in the Hayden and Sandpoint areas. The video features Aryan Nations leader Richard Butler preaching his white supremacist message.

Two months ago, residents received another mailing - posters explaining the Aryan Nations’ beliefs. That mailing was financed by the 11th Hour Remnant Messenger, an organization tied to two wealthy Sandpoint men.

Allen said he didn’t know about the first mailing until he was asked about it on a campaign questionnaire provided by the Bonner County Human Rights Task Force.

After the second mailing, he decided to draft a resolution. Part of his motivation is to clear his own name, he said.

“It seems like I’ve been stigmatized by some who are opposed to me, and it’s been hurtful to me,” he said. “That goes for the anti-government crowd, too. I’m not even remotely involved with that group.”

Sandpoint city Councilman Paul Graves, who also is a member of the Bonner County Human Rights Task Force, penned a resolution for the City Council to consider.

“I thought, the city’s got to say something,” Graves said Tuesday. “Symbolic acts are very significant. It won’t be significant to the people who put out the literature, but it will be to those of us who think that human rights are worth standing up for.”

Gretchen Albrecht-Hellar, president of the task force, was thrilled to hear of the proposed resolutions.

“The one thing I was concerned about when the first mailing went out was there was no action,” she said. “When the second went out, I didn’t want anyone to think that the only people who cared were on the task force.

“We need to create an image that this kind of stuff is not compatible with most people in Bonner County.”

Allen also hopes it improves the image of the county commissioner’s office.

“You hear a lot of negatives about what goes on in the commissioners’ office, but not a lot of positives,” he said.

The resolution, he added, “can raise awareness and let people know the commissioners are working together and taking a position as a correct position.”

The commissioners meet at 10 a.m. Thursday at the County Courthouse. The City Council meets at 5:30 p.m. today in City Hall.

WHAT’S NEXT? Commissioners will meet at 10 a.m. Thursday in the county courthouse. The City Council will meet at 5:30 p.m. today in City Hall.