October 10, 2019 Sandy Robson
On October 1, 2019, I sent an email to Ferndale Police Chief Kevin Turner, explaining that I was gathering information for a possible article for The Searchlight Review, regarding the recent flyering activities here in Whatcom County by the white nationalist/white supremacist hate group, the Patriot Front.
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September 1, 2019 Sandy Robson
There have been some people in Whatcom County who have suggested that posters linked to the white supremacist group, Patriot Front, which were reportedly placed in Ferndale in late July, might just be a stunt or a false flag. However, there have been numerous news stories reporting on the distribution of similar white supremacist posters and literature having occurred in other cities across the country.
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Photo Credit: The Western Front
February 21, 2018 Sarah Porter
Regional farms have started a campaign in response to farmworker advocacy groups that critics say is deceptive. Continue reading
August 26, 2017 Dena Jensen
What do we think about an elite citizen here in Whatcom County, such as Ted Van Dyk in his August 23, 2017 opinion piece in the online edition of Cascadia Weekly, asserting that the City of Bellingham temporarily taking down the signs at the so-called Pickett Bridge has “fed intolerance?” On social media this last week there was also an August 24, 2017 statement on The Pickett House FB page by past president of the Daughter of the Pioneers, Susan Hess expressing fears “that someone, in ignorance, will assume that Bellingham’s Pickett House Museum is a confederate monument and do it harm.” Continue reading
Recently, I learned of a group based in Bellingham that is classified by the Southern Policy Law Center as an anti-Muslim hate group. It’s name is the Fortress of Faith.
According to nonprofitfacts.com, the listed address for Fortress of Faith is 2501 Orleans St., Bellingham, WA. 98226. According to Superpages.com, that is the same street address for the Bellingham Baptist Church, which bills itself in that listing as, “The friendliest church in town.”
Click the graphic to access the 8/14/2017 Bellingham City Council Committee of the Whole meeting. Discussion regarding the Pickett Bridge starts at about 2:02:00 on the video.
August 15, 2017 Dena Jensen
At last night’s August 14, 2017 Bellingham City Council meeting, there was a brief discussion which touched on a bit longer discussion held earlier that day at Council’s Committee of the Whole meeting regarding renaming Bellingham’s Pickett Bridge. Council Member April Barker said the issue is being raised due to constituent’s concerns that the name of the bridge “is celebrating a man who has a legacy of pro-slavery and had a strong alliance with the Confederate Army.” In the summer 2015 The Bellingham Herald ran a story saying discussion of renaming of the bridge came forward when Community to Community Development and the Racial Justice Coalition, held a protest of crime-mapping software being considered by the Bellingham Police Department. Pickett Bridge was the site of their protest.
August 2, 2017 Dena Jensen
On Saturday July 22, 2017 Community to Community Development posted a live-feed of their Family Forum for Community Safety that was held that evening at the Bellingham Public Library.
Near the end of the event, the facilitator, Rosalinda Guillen of Community to Community Devolopment, explained why she was being direct and public with this discussion. She said that people are concerned about the federal government finding ways to impose immigration regulations and to make the county sheriff comply with immigration enforcement. Whatcom County Sheriff Bill Elfo responded, indicating that federal officials had already tried to exert pressure and impose regulations, but that his sheriff’s office had said no and that they would continue to say no to federal mandates. Continue reading
