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Corey White
On Oct. 6, anti-Hate activist
Floyd Cochran spoke to Mont
Alto students about the
prevalance of active hate
groups in Pennsylvania and his
experience as a former recruiter
and spokesman for the Aryan
Nation, a racist hate gang.
In his presentation, he
began by informing the
audience of the extraordinarily
large number of racist
coalitions that are active in
Pennsylvania. The loud and
doubtful responses from the
group showed obvious shock
to Cochran’s claim that this
state is fourth largest in the
nation for active hate groups.
He showed a map of
Pennsylvania littered with
black dots, each representing
the existence of an active hate
group in that area. The groups
he mentioned were the Aryan
Nation, Ku Klux Klan, Neo-
Confederates, Black Separatists
and Christian Identity. It was
surprising to see a greater
number of hate groups near the
cities of Philadelphia and
Pittsburgh where there are
large minority populations.
Even to see that there are four
active groups in Franklin
County was a shock to some
people who are now living in
this area.
Cochran spoke about how
he became involved with the
Aryan Nation as a student. He
said that while he was growing
up in rural Pennsylvania, he
was approached by Aryan
Nation recruiters at his school
who expressed interest in him.
He said that he never had
people show concern for his
best interests the way the Aryan
Nation did. Through his teen
years, he became involved in
the white supremacist activities
that his new family had shown
him. He eventually became
associated with other white
supremacist denominations
such as the Ku Klux Klan and
Christian Identity.
Cochran spoke on his
tactics of recruitment of mostly
white teens in high school and
college for his organization.
He used the Bible and God to
get them interested. He said that
he rallied through fear and
hatred and captivated young
people with stereotypes to join
his organization.
Kriscinda Meadows
Tristan Egolf’s first novel,
Lord of the Barnyard: Killing the
Fatted Calf and Arming the Aware
in the Cornbelt, reminded many
critics of such authors as
William Faulkner, Thomas
Pynchon and John Kennedy
Toole. Whether or not they are
right doesn’t seem so important,
once you sit down and read it.
Egolf-- is": not just ‘an
amalgamation of these author.
This debut made me excited
about a new author. It is detail
oriented and densely written,
with = characters painted
colorfully with old, dirty
brushes.
Its story follows the
reluctant adventures of one
John Kaltenbrunner, from his
beginnings as a farmhand child
prodigy to his endings as the
mastermind behind the
complete and utter social
breakdown of an entire
town...and, sadly, every
pathetic and unfair thing that
happens to him in between.
This book, though
relatively unknown to popular
audiences in America, is far
reaching enough to have
inspired an album called
Monument for John Kaltenbrunner
(Barnyard s foreign title) by an
In 1992, Cochran was at an
Idaho compound for the white
supremacist Hitler Youth
Festival. At the festival, guards
told him that his four-year old
son had to be killed for having
a cleft palette and thus being a
“defect.” Cochran began
having doubts about what he
was doing and realized that he
didn’t believe his thought
process and teachings were
right. He decided not to kill his
son and end his involvement
with the white supremacist
coalition; he was given minutes
to leave the compound.
Cochran told the audience
that he went through a very
long and difficult process to
leave behind all of his
negativity. He decided that he
should do something positive
to help himself and others, and
counter the message of hate.
Students asked whether or
not he had been threatened by
white supremacists for
deserting them. He gave
personal accounts of being
threatened via the internet, at
his speeches, and at a garage
sale. He said that it was scary
didn’t stop him.
August Kreis is the Aryan
Nation’s leader of Pennsylvania
and was responsible for most
of the threats to Cochran. He
showed a news clip from a
Harrisburg televised news
station showing Kreis and his
hateful perspective. On the
news clip, Kreis revealed his
plans for building an Aryan
compound in Pennsylvania’s
Potter County. The news clip
also shows Cochran speaking
against white supremacy at
colleges and high schools
across Pennsylvania.
Near the end, Cochran
suggested that we should all
stand against hatred. He
apologized to anyone whom
his racism may have affected
and he seemed very sincere as
he was doing so.
There weren't many
questions from the audience at
the end of his presentation. I
think that most people were in
a slight bit of awe over the
shocking information they
received. I was. The few
questions that were asked
during the speech were
thoroughly explained. It ran
longer than most people
expected but I think everyone
was satisfied.
obscure German band made
up of two Bavarian social
workers, Buddy and the Huddle.
After reading this book, I
was surprised, and not
surprised at all, to find that
Egolf hailed from our very
own backyard — Lancaster, PA.
Or at least, that’s where he _
makes his home now. He went
on to write Skirt and the Fiddle,
a tiny feather of a book in
comparison to Barnyard. 186
pages shorter and actually
using written dialogue, this
story recounts the tale of
Charlie Evans, violin virtuoso
turned flophouse dweller. His
unlikely team-up with fellow
flop-houser Tinsel Greetz
eventually leads them to the
sewers, as highly profitable rat
killers. Enter Louise, and we've
got ourselves a love story.
Currently, Egolf is busy
penning his third novel (Korn
Wolf), about a young reporter
who happens upon an Amish -
scare story known as “the Korn
Wolf.”
Egolf made headlines in the
last few months as a member
of “The Smoketown Six,” a
group of people arrested in
June for staging a protest as
President Bush’s motorcade
drove by. The protest involved
Egolf and several others
stripping down to thongs and
reenacting the infamous Abu
Ghraib naked Human
Pyramid photo. Hilarious,
harmless, yet poignant.
Fortunately, charges were
dropped on October 15%, the
courts citing that the group’s
actions that day were protected
under the Constitution’s first
amendment right to free speech.
To keep abreast of Egolf’s
writings and other
undertakings, head over to
Windmills Online: A Multi-
Media Library Publication and
Radio Station. (http://
www.windmillsonline.us/
index.php). Here, you can also
read an excerpt from Korn Wolf.
So much talent, and so close.