Election 2008

Racism saddens residents
Vandals spray paint a swastika on Barack Obama campaign sign
by Karen Boush
Herald Staff Writer

A large Barack Obama campaign sign erected east of Durango on Monday sparked two immediate, racist reactions.

The first occurred Monday morning, as Jeff Widen, a La Plata County Democratic Party volunteer, was installing the 8-foot by 4-foot sign near County Road 222 and U.S. Highway 160.
custom residential construction

On Tuesday, Jeff Widen, a volunteer with the La Plata County Democrats, looks at a Barack Obama campaign sign he put up the previous day near U.S. Highway 160 and County Road 222 east of Durango. It was vandalized overnight.

"A car drove by and (someone) yelled out the window 'No (racial epithet)!'" Widen said in a phone interview Tuesday. "I stopped, and I said, 'Did I hear what I think I just heard, in Durango, in 2008?' And yes, I did. I was shocked and, frankly, very saddened."

The second occurred sometime Monday night, when vandals used spray paint to draw a swastika on the sign and cover its lettering.

"I was angry and sad that something like this would happen in Durango, because we all want to believe it's a little fantasy land," Jill Somrak said of waking up and seeing the defaced sign the next morning.

Mrs. Somrak and her husband, Mike Somrak, asked to have the sign supporting the Democratic Party presidential candidate placed in their yard, where it would be highly visible to passing motorists.

Disheartened by the negative reactions, Mrs. Somrak said she thought, "'Come on guys, respect my opinion and I'll respect yours,'" she said in a phone interview Tuesday.

Ron Tate, La Plata County Republican chairman, also strongly condemned the actions.

"There's all sorts of extreme elements in society, in any group. This kind of behavior is unpardonable. This kind of behavior we don't condone at all," he said, also in a phone interview Tuesday.

Tate said he had to wonder if juveniles looking for attention carried out the vandalism.

Widen, however, questioned whether ongoing attacks made on Obama's character by Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain and his running mate Gov. Sarah Palin indirectly prompted the racist actions.

"I think some of the stuff coming out of the other side is really just fueling the fire for people doing stuff that is over the top," he said.

Mrs. Somrak said she hopes the Democratic Party will either replace or restore the sign, but she said she expects a positive outcome nonetheless.

"I can't help but feel there's going to be something good coming out of this negative thing. There are a lot of human beings who are intelligent and do respect each other's opinions, even if (they) don't agree," she said.

One neighbor has already offered to repaint the sign, and people have stopped to tape small Obama campaign signs to the larger, defaced sign.

As the parents of three young children, Mrs. Somrak said she and her husband are careful not to use the word "hate" around their children and simply explained the incident by telling them, "Somebody doesn't like Obama."

Widen said the acts left him more committed than ever to an Obama presidency.

"It just makes you want to work for Obama that much more, frankly," he said.

Matt Chandler, press secretary for the Obama campaign in Colorado, declined to comment on the actions and whether similar acts have occurred in other parts of the state.

kboush@durangoherald.com