Keruvalia
09-09-2004, 15:51
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/nation/2785193
Founder of Aryan Nations dead at 86
Associated Press
SPOKANE, WASH. - Richard G. Butler, the notorious white supremacist who founded the Aryan Nations and was once dubbed the "elder statesman of American hate," has died. He was 86, authorities said Wednesday.
Butler died in his sleep, said sheriff's Capt. Ben Wolfinger, of the Kootenai County, Idaho, Sheriff's Department.
The Aryan Nations lost its church and 20-acre compound in Idaho in 2000 after a $6.3 million civil judgment led to a bankruptcy filing. He made few public appearances in recent years because of failing health.
But in July he rode in the back of a pickup that was dragging the flag of Israel during a parade by about 40 of his followers through Coeur d'Alene.
Butler, a longtime admirer of Adolf Hitler and white supremacist religious teaching, moved to Idaho in the 1970s, claiming that he was impressed by its high percentage of white residents. To the dismay of many locals, the region became known as hospitable to white supremacist groups.
Butler's church held that whites are the true children of God, that Jews are the offspring of Satan and that blacks and other minorities are inferior.
In the 1980s, followers who called themselves The Order committed a series of armored car robberies and bombings, and killed Denver talk radio host Alan Berg.
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I officially declare today a National Holiday.
Founder of Aryan Nations dead at 86
Associated Press
SPOKANE, WASH. - Richard G. Butler, the notorious white supremacist who founded the Aryan Nations and was once dubbed the "elder statesman of American hate," has died. He was 86, authorities said Wednesday.
Butler died in his sleep, said sheriff's Capt. Ben Wolfinger, of the Kootenai County, Idaho, Sheriff's Department.
The Aryan Nations lost its church and 20-acre compound in Idaho in 2000 after a $6.3 million civil judgment led to a bankruptcy filing. He made few public appearances in recent years because of failing health.
But in July he rode in the back of a pickup that was dragging the flag of Israel during a parade by about 40 of his followers through Coeur d'Alene.
Butler, a longtime admirer of Adolf Hitler and white supremacist religious teaching, moved to Idaho in the 1970s, claiming that he was impressed by its high percentage of white residents. To the dismay of many locals, the region became known as hospitable to white supremacist groups.
Butler's church held that whites are the true children of God, that Jews are the offspring of Satan and that blacks and other minorities are inferior.
In the 1980s, followers who called themselves The Order committed a series of armored car robberies and bombings, and killed Denver talk radio host Alan Berg.
------------------
I officially declare today a National Holiday.