"It's Okay To Be White" Posters Distributed Throughout Moscow

By Nicole Hindberg on November 6, 2018

In the last few weeks, posters that only include the text “It’s okay to be white” have been posted on the University of Idaho campus and across the city of Moscow. This phrase is common among white supremacist groups. Naturally, many students have brought this to the attention of the president of the university. Chuck Staben sent out an email saying that he will not take down the posters. He said although the university’s views don’t reflect the views of the poster, he can’t take any action against them, summarizing that the speech may be hateful, but it’s protected by the first amendment despite it being hate speech.

I took this picture of a poster posted throughout the city of Moscow

While there has been no public action for or against these posters, students have responded. Many have just taken them down and another is replaced within the next few days. This week, a new strain of posters have been posted around campus and the city of Moscow. These posters say, “It’s NOT okay to be fascist.” These posters have slowly taken the place of the “It’s okay to be white” posters.

These posters have not been taken down or received nearly as much backlash as the original posters. Neither side has come forward claiming responsibility for the posters. The university is unclear whether or not this is a group of students or a singular student.

Many students have commented about the posters on social media but have had no visible reaction yet. The Moscow-Pullman Daily News have also published articles and editorials on this topic. The city has not taken action and no formal protests have been made public yet.

Many faculty members have responded by talking about the issue during lectures, while others have completely ignored it. Nevertheless, the posters have sparked a conversation across campus just in time for the midterm elections. The motive for these posters is unclear and there is no current investigation to figure out why.

It’s debatable whether or not either poster has sparked any movement or validated a certain political agenda. But many argue that it has increased voting incentives for college students and community members. The university is funding a shuttle to the voting polls on November 2 because precincts are no longer available on campus for college students this year. The university and the city of Moscow are continuing to update the student body as well as residents of Moscow on developments in this issue.

Follow Uloop

Apply to Write for Uloop News

Join the Uloop News Team

Discuss This Article

Back to Top

Log In

Contact Us

Upload An Image

Please select an image to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format
OR
Provide URL where image can be downloaded
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format

By clicking this button,
you agree to the terms of use

By clicking "Create Alert" I agree to the Uloop Terms of Use.

Image not available.

Add a Photo

Please select a photo to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format