First I saw a Facebook post with a handful of folks out by the Four Corners, several masked, and with the Confederate battle flag. Then I noticed a comment from the Ranch Hand that the folks there don’t appreciate racism. And a third post looking at the identity of Hayden Lake. And I realized that the actions I’ve seen from individuals quietly opposing racism have been more typically Montanan than the racists ever could.
Thirty years ago, there was a racist in Superior – I always suspected he picked the town for the name. He would schedule his rallies in Superior, they would attract almost enough fellow riders to fill a phone booth (and many more reporters). If I recall correctly, his nickname was ‘Slim’ – most likely an abbreviation from the word ‘slimy’.
Slim(y) would drop his racist newspapers off in Libby. Lorena, all 100 pounds of her, would pick up his papers and haul them to the green boxes – excepting a single issue that she would bring to Lincoln County Campus as a trophy of her expedition. She either had his schedule down or some really good informants.
Slim(y) went out of business when he actually got a recruit to help him – and his recruit ripped off all of his literature. Lacking any papers or pamphlets to spread across western Montana, Slim(y) went out of business, and Superior quit being associated with his tiny movement.
Then there’s the story of Butler’s German Shepherd. While I knew Lorena and can speak with some level of familiarity about the racist who was located in Superior, this story is definitely hearsay – but it has face validity. Butler dropped his Aryan German Shepherd stud dog off at the veterinarian’s for shots, then someone who had seen the drop off called the vet’s office and, impersonating Butler, said “As long as the dog’s there, neuter him.” (This story can be checked at https://www.bryandenson.com/blog/2017/8/19/white-powers-biggest-asshole-my-day-with-the-godfather-of-americas-neo-nazi-gangs )
I recall talking with a woman from Browning on a South Dakota reservation – our topic was our elderly fathers and their horses, and we were in the midst of a group of Sicangu (Brule). One listener commented on the commonality – aging parents and their horses were more a common thing in Montana – whether white or Indian. No news to either of us – liking horses is more important than skin color.
We may always have a few racists around – but as we saw thirty or forty years ago with Slim(y)’s Superior rallies – they have a hard time getting enough people to fill a phone booth, and racist rallies draw more people from the media than participants. Laugh at them – while they would like to have people take them seriously, their miniscule rallies merit being taken with mockery and laughter.
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