The day I decided to interview the head of the Aryan Nations

Obviously, I survived, but that doesn't mean it wasn't a stupid decision

Coeur d’Alene, Idaho

Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, is one of the most beautiful places I’ve been to in the US. It pains me to see the news of what’s going on now and brings back memories of a most unusual … and stupid … day. It was in the 90s and for some reason I decided I wanted to write a novel about the Aryan Nations and their violence which was in the news a lot during that time.

Here’s what I wrote in my pre-Substack blog:

I wanted to see for myself what they looked like and what they said in a one-to-one conversation. I was surprised when they granted me an interview. I was a nobody from no where.

When I drove into the compound in my tiny rental car, two old dogs came up to the car, tails wagging, which somewhat relieved the pounding of my heart. At least the dogs were friendly.

The compound had a rural, run down look: worn wooden buildings, people sitting in rocking chairs on a long, unpainted front porch. I noticed two, tow-headed children coloring on the porch steps. I could have been visiting my grandparents.

Butler’s office was a make-do metal building overflowing with papers, pictures of Hitler, swastikas and t-shirts for the believers. Butler was in his mid-70s and was kindly enough as he began to spew a well-rehearsed stream of how white people are threatened and have to stand up for themselves. He had heard all of my questions before. His answers were ready and pat so he didn't mind that I was recording them.

After about an hour of his disturbing monologue, I left. As I walked to my car, I glanced over at the children and could see what they were coloring: swastikas. That image of those young, innocent children coloring a symbol of hate shocked my system. I managed to get my car started and leave property, then stopped and wept and still tear up thinking about them.

Thirty-five years ago … those children could be involved in the battle going on as I write this. I decided to ask Gemini for an update and got this …

From Gemini: The Aryan Nations was a white supremacist, neo-Nazi group founded in 1973 by Richard Girnt Butler near Hayden Lake, just outside Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. The group was based on the Christian Identity movement, which claims that people of Northern European descent are the true Israelites and promotes virulent anti-Semitism and racism. The compound served as a gathering place for white supremacists from across the United States, hosting annual congresses and youth festivals throughout the 1980s and early 1990s.

The group’s activities in the Coeur d’Alene area attracted significant controversy, and by the late 1990s, local resistance had grown. In 1998, two security guards from the compound assaulted a local Native American woman and her son, leading to a landmark civil lawsuit. In 2000, a court awarded the victims $6.3 million, forcing Butler into bankruptcy and resulting in the loss of the Hayden Lake compound, which was later turned into a peace park by North Idaho College. The buildings were dismantled and burned in training exercises conducted by local fire departments. (JW: interesting coincidence with the current battle and the killing of firefighters.)

After the loss of the compound, Richard Butler continued to live in the area, but his influence waned as the group splintered and leadership disputes emerged. He appointed several successors—Neuman Britton (who died shortly after) and Harold Ray Redfeairn—but the group remained unstable. Butler died in 2004, and by that time, the organization had already fragmented into multiple factions.

Current Status in Coeur d’Alene and Beyond

There is no longer an active, centralized Aryan Nations presence in the Coeur d’Alene area. The group’s physical headquarters was destroyed, and the land was repurposed for educational and community use. In the years following Butler’s death, the remnants of Aryan Nations splintered into several small factions across the country, with leaders such as Charles John Juba, August Kreis III, and others attempting to maintain the group’s legacy in places like Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Some splinter groups, like Aryan Nations Revival and the Crusaders of Yahweh, emerged but remained marginal and largely disconnected from Idaho.

By the mid-2010s, the official Aryan Nations organization had all but disappeared, with no active headquarters or significant public presence in North Idaho. White supremacist activity has since shifted primarily to online forums and small, decentralized gatherings, though the ideology persists in some fringe groups nationwide. No major Aryan Nations activities have been reported in the Coeur d’Alene area since the dismantling of the compound and Butler’s death.