Idaho Matters

The history of hate groups in Idaho

Racial hate is not new to Idaho, and the Aryan Nations are a big part of the history of hate in the Gem State.

Broadcast on:: 03 Apr 2024

FILE - In this May 22, 2001, file photo, a worker moves children's play equipment away from a watch tower and off the property of the former headquarters of the neo-Nazi Aryan Nations, near Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. Nearly two decades after the compound was demolished, far-right extremists are maintaining a presence in the Pacific Northwest. White nationalism has been on the rise across the U.S., but it has particular resonance along the Idaho-Washington border. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, File)(Elaine Thompson/AP / AP)

Police in Coeur d’Alene are still investigating allegations of racial harassment against the University of Utah basketball team. According to reports by the team last month, racial slurs and a Confederate flag were part of the incident.

Two years ago, 31 members of a group called the “Patriot Front” were arrested and charged with conspiring to riot during a Pride Festival event also in Coeur d’Alene.

Four years ago, Boise’s Anne Frank Memorial was defaced with swastikas.

Racial hate is not new to Idaho, and the Aryan Nations are a big part of the history of hate in the Gem State.

Alisha Graefe has been studying the Aryan Nations in Idaho for years. She’s an archivist at the Albertsons Library at Boise State University, and she’ll be giving a talk on April 11th at the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute in Boise. She joined Idaho Matters for a preview.