Front Street Weekly; 703

[Intro music] For I don't anticipate going to prison whatsoever. But the Aryan Nations will grow. The Aryan Nations is the race. This is a race of people. You're not going to exterminate us all at once. Even if you were... If Richard Butler had his way, the Aryan Nations would be part of a white homeland in the Pacific Northwest. But federal investigators say Butler and his followers have been plotting to overthrow the government. And now he'll have to battle those charges in court. From his headquarters in Idaho, Butler gave us some answers, face to face. [theme music] I just like the I just sort of like the idea of doing...a lot of different weird things. At the same time [drum roll]

For John Newton, being on stage is an opportunity to push his musical talents to the limit. His performances are sometimes difficult to describe, [violin music] but they're also difficult to forget. Tonight find out how he comes up with these productions and what he's planning next. [violin music] Good evening, I'm Jim Swenson, Gwyneth Gamble Booth is off tonight. Welcome to another edition of Front Street Weekly. Our first story tonight focuses on northern Idaho, where an aging country minister says he's the victim of racial bigotry. The Reverend Richard Butler also believes that Jews are working for the devil, that whites are God's chosen race and that ultimately a day of bloody reckoning will settle the issue. But right now, the future of the Aryan Nations is in doubt. Butler has been indicted on conspiracy charges and people who live in the community are speaking out against his ideas. But will the combination of federal charges and local opposition be enough to stop the white supremacy movement in the northwest. Butler is a man who seldom talks with the press, but Reporter Rod

"?Mynott?" got a rare interview at the Aryan Nations headquarters in Idaho. [birds chirping] Christianity is based upon race. And race is Christianity. Call it the dark side of the American dream. [fire crackling] Free again, in the land that we chose. Free forever to the ?law? of god. Hail victory! Hail victory! Hail victory! Hail victory! In remote northern Idaho, it's a dream of an all white homeland in the northwest. To many of these neo-Nazis, this is where a final stand must be made. This is warfare against the culture of the white race. We're at war with a alien Anti-Christ and a white system of thought which asks for us to be destroyed and exterminated. Violence is a

prerequisite to living. The Reverend Richard Butler heads the white supremacist group known as the Aryan Nations. His church sits on a 20 acre compound in the backwoods of northern Idaho, near Coeur d'Alene. It's here on Sundays where you'll find the 69 year old Butler preaching hatred of Jews, minorities, and the U.S. government, whom he says are out to destroy whites. They see that they're being ripped off of their homes, they're ripped off of their families, ripped off of their jobs, they have no place to go. Then they say hey this is pretty violent. They threw me out of my home violently. They threw me out of my job violently. Now I'm going to get violent. This is what I foresee. I foresee this. More guns, more shootings. Oh, there'll be more of everything, you bet. It's that kind of talk and alleged action that's gotten Butler in trouble. Last spring, he and nine other racist leaders from around the country were indicted on charges of sedition. Authorities claim a plan to topple the federal government was

hatched on Butler's compound in 1983. Allegedly, their revolution was to include robberies, counterfeiting, assassinations, bombings, and polluting city water supplies. Now out on bond awaiting trial, Butler denies any wrongdoing and says the issue is really about his right to free speech. Did you meet with Mr. Miles, Mr. Beam to plot to overthrow the government? No! I've never plotted to overthrow the government, the government is gone, it's been overthrown! It's my first amendment rights, is what they're indicting me on, they're indicting me on for the truth that I brought up. Authorities say the crackdown has left the Aryans leaderless, in disarray, and losing members. Still, some 175 neo-Nazis and Ku Klux Klan members from around the country rallied this past summer on Butler's compound as part of their annual World Aryan Congress. The mood was reportedly low-key compared to previous meetings. Gone were displays of weapons and hot rhetoric.

Instead, members passed the collection plate to pay legal costs of the indicted leaders. At its peak in 1983, Authorities say the Aryan Nations locally boasted about 75 committed followers. Today that number has dropped to little more than a dozen. And experts admit they really don't know how many belong nationally to the Aryan Nations. Richard Butler claims he has about 6000 members across the country. The Aryan's downfall really began with the militant gang known as The Order. Many of its members came from Richard Butler's church. Some two dozen are now serving prison sentences on charges linked to murder, bombings, counterfeiting, and armored car robberies, committed in a bloody bid to overthrow the government. Most thought the arrests had crushed The Order. Not so. Last fall, a bomb exploded at the Coeur d'Alene home of the reverend Bill Wassmuth, a leading critic of the Aryan Nations. No one was injured in the blast

but damage was heavy. But I'm okay and everybody else is too, that's-I'm really pleased about that. That shake you up? Yeah, it did some, I was anxious there for a while. In terms of my commitment to what we were pursuing, that just convinced me all the more that we had to-we had to go about this thing with renewed energy and that we had to move this whole community in a direction that would simply not allow people with that kind of a mindset to continue their activity. They did continue. Two weeks later, three more bombs rocked downtown Coeur d'Alene. Targets included a building housing the FBI. A fourth bomb was detonated by police. Again, no one was injured, but damage was extensive. [sirens] Three men were later arrested and charged in the bombings. All had ties to the Aryan Nations. The FBI says the suspects intended to complete The Order's murderous mission. Until recently,

Butler had escaped being directly linked to the violence of his followers but the sedition charge paints a new picture. But I think some of the people, Miles, Butler, Beam, and others who were indicted in April of '87 as being part of the conspiracy will be somehow tied to the-at least the creation of The Order if not in fact planning the kinds of activities that The Order was engaged in. I haven't-I have nothing to do with organizing The Order You didn't have any consent in that? No. Any help-did you help them at all? They were good people, but I had nothing to do with it. Do you consider them heroes? Yes. Mm-hmm. Why? Because they fought for the life of their people. How responsible do you think Butler is for encouraging violence, all the violence that has happened? I think he's responsible for all of it. I don't mean he's solely responsible but with every breath and turn, they preach hatred and violence, and they encourage people to go out and live in this fantasy world that he

talks of. His violence is, his rhetoric is violent and moving. Still at large is Louis Beam, a Texas Ku Klux Klansman also wanted for sedition. At one time, he was thought to be Butler's successor. The FBI says Beam is armed and extremely dangerous. To understand Louis Beam, one need only read this pamphlet which Beam wrote. It's entitled "Understanding the struggle, or, why we have to kill the bastards!" The booklet can be purchased through the Aryan Nation's church. It outlines a system of awarding points to Aryan warriors for killing blacks, Jews, government leaders, and journalists. One of those targeted was Kootenai County Undersheriff Larry Broadbent, considered the leading expert on the Aryan Nation's. A former security chief of Butler's Eldon 'Bud' Cutler is now behind bars for trying to hire a hitman to kill Broadbent, and others the Aryans considered enemies. I can't let it worry me and I can't let it intimidate me. And if it-

If it happens, it'll happen. Are you packing a gun, or-? I always have and always do. And my gun is never without me, Pretty-pretty much so. Those like Marvin Stern of the Anti-Defamation League expect the violence to continue. Unfortunately, those people who remain in these organizations are the most virulent and violence prone and those are the ones that are conducting the kind of violence that we've seen. [church congregation singing] "God bless America" [singing] "My home sweet" "Home" [end singing] After last year's bombings, northern Idaho said it was finally fed up with the Aryan's-now rallies like this one are staged annually to promote human rights. Community leaders know they must combat the image of their area as a haven for neo-Nazis. For years, the Aryans were tolerated as a small band of kooks. [applause] The people of Idaho are united.

In every corner of this state they agree that we are not going to permit one tiny group with- which to preaches the nonsense of intolerance to ruin our good name. Now, we are not going to be polarized but neither will we be intimidated. Besides rallies, a county-wide taskforce on human relations also monitors racial harassment, provides support for victims, and lobbies for tougher civil rights laws. [applause] The work of the task force is considered a model for other communities. I think the people in northern Idaho, Coeur d'Alene, Kootenai County, for years perhaps could sit on the fence on this whole issue of prejudice and racism because we don't have that many minority people here and there wasn't-they weren't really confronted with that issue. The presence of the Aryans in a way, has served us positively because no longer are people able to just sit on the fence.

They have to make a choice. Just how many climb off that fence remains to be seen. This is an area that's 95 percent white. Many of the 70,000 residents have moved here to escape big cities, to enjoy the good life. A resort spot, tourism is a major employer here. Vacationers we talked to didn't seem overly worried about the Aryan Nations. There's violence all over the world so you know, if you're gonna get scared and lock your doors, forget it. You might as well go do what you want to do, you know. No-not as bad as it has been. Cleared up. I would like to see 'em outta the area. Marshall Mend is a realtor in Coeur d'Alene, and a member of the Human Relations Task Force. He says the presence of the neo-Nazis no longer hurts business. You'd be surprised, very few people that we talk to, you know, come in and say, "what about the Aryan Nations?" We just don't hear it, that's not a question that comes up an awful lot. It did. but it doesn't anymore. A couple of years ago it was-it was a

problem. Today it's not a problem. And the impression that I get from leaders is that well we have that small group of people. The Aryan Nations. Yeah. And that's the only problem we have and that's not true. It's in the schools, it's on the street, it's in the stores. To be black in northern Idaho is yet another story. Attorney Ida Leggett says racial problems run much deeper than just the Aryans. I keep saying not uncommon-it's not uncommon for me to drive down Sherman, drive down a residential street and kids are on the street and and hear, "hey nigger." Leggett believes members of the Aryan Nations harassed her about a year ago. There were drive-bys of her home, racial slurs yelled in the middle of the night. Why haven't you moved away? The main reason is I'm not gonna have anybody dictate how I live and where I live and where my place is supposed you know, is supposed to be. My place is wherever I am and wherever I wanna be and I will move. But it will be on my terms when

I get ready to. Signs of racial hate still abound on Richard Butler's compound but much has changed. You won't find armed guards patrolling the grounds. The only live-in resident is Richard Masker a self-described conspiratologist, who stresses he is not a militant neo-Nazi. We're saying that International Marxist Zionism has used the various ethnic groups to intermingle 'em, and miscegenation, and interrace mixing to destroy or break down the fabric of the white society because the white society is that element which the conspirators most fear. As for Richard Butler, he's expected to go on trial sometime early next year. Until then, he continues to answer letters and looks after his prison ministry mailings. Many followers of the Aryans are recruited from inside prisons. Butler maintains he won't be convicted, and claims the indictment has only strengthened the Aryan movement.

You don't mind going to prison for for your struggle? No. No. I minded yes. Nobody wants to go to prison. But if that's what it takes, in other words, it's something that has to be done. Aging, and in declining health following recent heart surgery, Butler is yet to name a successor. He told us several people are on his list. [papers rustling] It includes Charles Tate, a close friend, and James Wickstrom, a top organizer in a militant group known as Posse Comitatus Some of the possible successors to Butler are certainly cause for concern because of their own Violent past or associations with violence [children singing] "To the redwood forests, to the Gulf Stream waters, this land was made for you and me" [song continuing in background] In northern Idaho, there are songs about peace and brotherhood these days. The community knows it cannot rest until the Aryans disband and leave But few believe that will happen any time soon. [fire crackling] Slowly,

inexorably. I think all we have to do is wait. And it will be some more reorganization and I believe that we will see violence occuring again. Where that may come out at is is anybody's guess. [children singing] "Nobody living can ever stop me as I go walking that freedom highway, nobody living can make me turn back, this land was made for you and me." Butler is expected to go on trial early next year and if he's convicted, he could face up to 20 years in prison. Also, four members of the group called The Order are going on trial this week in Denver. They're accused of murdering talk show host Alan Berg several years ago. Berg was a frequent critic of the organization. The four defendants are already serving time on other charges; they were convicted of racketeering and conspiracy in Seattle back in

1985. Well, our other story tonight focuses on a man who isn't easy to categorize and that's the way he likes it. John Newton has spent a long time mixing music with art. Newton says that 10 years ago, he was throwing things at his audience or setting up kitchen appliances onstage, or giving away the door of a '52 Buick as a door prize. Today his talents are as varied as before. But his credits read differently. He's composed film scores, music for commercials, and appeared at the performing arts center. Reporter Hope Robertson profiles this Portland composer who combines music with business, and a flair for the absurd. [violin music] My name is John Newton, and I'm from Portland, and I work in Portland as a composer. And, like, running a fish bait scene in Utah, the truth be known [orchestral music] [singing, playing piano] "Payless, savings with a smile."

[typewriter clacking] I just like the-I sort of like the idea of doing a lot of different weird things at the same time. Yee-haw! For the moment, he's a cowboy fiddler. But through the week, he's a commercial producer. Sometimes, he scores films and [fiddle music in background] occasionally, he's an avant-garde performer. What wouldn't John Newton do for music? There was a time when I was playing a wedding reception and I-I just had had it. And I made the three Newton laws. Which are I'll never play less than a packed house. I'll never play with less than a perfect sound system. And I'll never play Color My World. These are the three-the three Newton laws. The sound system was fine, the house packed. And he didn't have to play Color My World on Halloween night, 1986. Portland's Northwest Film and Video Center hired Newton to compose a score for the silent classic

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. [music] Strings at 52. Just play weirdness where you come in, don't try to play time, by that time we're we're in-we're in-we're in the ozone by then. Well I'll cue you in and you just play weirdness. It's my responsibility and the player's responsibility to know what it is he's going to be doing but not necessarily for me to write out every single note. It's a lot better to- [orchestral music] If the guy's good- It's a lot better to kinda let him cut loose, particularly if he's looking at the-at the screen because then he can be inspired, somewhat spontaneous. My style has always been to do big one-nighters. Because on a big one-nighter you can get the best cats in town. You know. If you're trying to start a band with, you know, 50 of the best in town, you could never do it. You couldn't afford it. Plus they could-their schedules wouldn't allow it. But you can get them out for four or five rehearsals

plus a show. I would say-I would say none of the people that I was working with there make their living doing avant-garde music. I mean nobody does that. Mancini said, "if you're going to make a living at music you should sell band uniforms", you know. Yet you make a living. Well yeah, I mean the point is, though, that I don't make a living at doing live scores to silent films. I don't make a living doing art music. You don't make a living doing the things you really enjoy the most? Oh hell no. I lost money on that show. How much did you lose? Oh middle three figures and that's that's mild Patios, which I did in '85 I-I lost almost $3,000 on that show. Some Velvet Evening? Yeah. [music crescendos] I've always felt like doing shows was a little bit like getting away with something. You know. Sort of like a like-a like a panty raid or you know like breaking someone's windows or something like that, only you're getting away with it, kind of, you know it's-it's exciting it's

dangerous, it-personally, I get a big thrill about doing real bizarre stuff on stage. But all the world is not a stage for Newton. Most of his world is in a small studio. Here, he and his partner Michael Bard produce sounds that are pretty familiar to Portland's radio and television audiences. [dramatic music] "Should I take a chance? Do I feel lucky?" I love-I really like doing commercials. I like doing commercial videos. I think they're very much of a challenge. I know that that would-I know that that would mean a few notes that wouldn't be in the red, so [laughs] I know you hate that. If I put too big a dynamic range on there, which means if I pull the level back and let it "?I can let it go plus two. he's gonna squeeze it anyway?" It's not gonna sound as good. I make my living really doing-doing production for other people's projects. 99 percent of what I do isn't generated by me. So the key is

being adaptable. Being pretty-pretty ready to get in on somebody else's trip, you know, climbing into somebody else's car and going down their road for a while. How'd that go? Oh it went [playing the piano] [singing, playing piano] "You-you get more for your money with this week." [singing] "With this week classifieds" Personally, I feel that the artist should-should be out-figuring out how to make a living. That's part of being an artist to me. Getting an audience to look at what you're doing is a big part of doing an art thing. I like the idea of doing pretty bizarre stuff. On my own dime. [violin music] I didn't pack the house that night. I was a little too confident. I had a little too much hubris. I sort of felt like any show I do, people of Portland will come flocking to.

Well they didn't. They didn't like the ticket price of 7.50 even though that's a pittance compared to any national act. And, you know, I sort of, in a way, that was the last show that I generated myself in Portland and in a way, I felt a bit let down. [piano] Disappointment has been a constant player in Newton's performance career and since 1985, he has not put together his own show. But the jingles have brought in a lot of business and in the summer of 1987, Newton was asked to compose music for the opening of Portland's Performing Arts Center. [triumphant music playing] I like real triumphant, sort of noble, kind of stuff, I mean the finale for the Performing Arts Center was kind of noble, and uplifting and, you know We're calling it "?Vangelis?" in a blender. I'm sure most people didn't really know that it was original music. It wasn't like the city of Portland.

I thought it was initially, but it wasn't exactly like the city of Portland commissioned me to write a piece for their Performing Arts Center. So there was this big honor. It didn't work out that way at all. It was really more like we're doing this big show and we need some music for it. You know, here's your dough. Money again. Newton doesn't work for free [woman singing] except on his own shows. Most of the people in his cast also work for no pay. Now, he pays most of the band members part of Newton's mystique is that he's able to recruit the rest of his performers and get them to donate their talents. I don't really think it's a good idea to pay people a small amount of money. You know, you need to pay people a lot of money or nothing because if you pay people a small amount of money, you're limiting what they're worth. People nothing. There worth an infinite amount. [singing, applause] There's no audience, no applause, no ovations in the sound studio, so we wondered if maybe he's considered performing full time.

I've been working 10 years to get to the point where I've got too much work. You know. I'm not quite ready to just chuck it and say well I'm an artist, I don't want to do jingles anymore. I like doing that. I like-I worked hard to get to the point where I've got a lot of jingle work. And then, we made the mistake of telling Newton that we were looking for new theme music for Front Street Weekly. Now for this one I started out, I started out playing the "Neil ?Layer?" report music and [humming theme music]. That's where I started. But this is where it ended. This is Front Street Weekly theme music, I think, you ready? [jazz music playing] [woman singing a jingle] "Payless, payless" [woman singing] "Front Street with a smile!" [Newton singing] "Front Street, Front Street" [Newton singing off-beat] "Front Street Weekly" Sorta. [music ends] Well this week Newton will repeat his Halloween performance at the Northwest Film and Video Center. He's composed a special musical score for the 1920 film classic

Nosferatu. This is the original version of the Dracula story made in Germany. It's happening this Friday night at the Northwest Film and Video Center in Portland. Well, next time on Front Street Weekly, we'll focus on the debate over a key part of the legal system. These days a lot of convicts are hitting the streets before their sentences are up. [wind rustling] A lot of people say well, am I gonna make it out there or not? I know I'm going to make it. [prison doors clanging] Because this is not the life for me. I have. Somewhere, I have a wife and kids, it's gonna play a big part in my staying out. With prisons in Oregon jammed to capacity, more and more convicts are being released on parole. But their problems don't end once they get beyond the prison walls. Life on the outside can be another form of hard time. We'll find out how the parole system works and whether it helps convicts rejoin society or prey on it. We'll also focus on one of the most beautiful parts of the Oregon coast-the Cascade Head research area and hear conflicting opinions over what's

being done to preserve the area in its natural state. There's all sorts of people on Cascade Head. If you talk to-may not say it the same way I said it, but it boils down to essentially the same thing. Something drew them here. They acknowledged it and they did it. And there's a quite a number of people that Will fight not to have it ruined. If other people want their land in it, fine. But I don't. I didn't. I'd be just as happy if they left me out, left us alone. But you see, We didn't have a choice. Not everyone agrees with what's happening at Cascade Head. But it may hold key answers to some tough questions in the debate over our natural resources. Well that's it for this edition of Front Street Weekly. Thanks for joining us. Good night.