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Jouhari/Horton v. United Klans of America/Frankhouser

Case Number

03-98-0692-8 & 03-98-0797-8

Bonnie Jouhari was a fair housing specialist at the Reading-Berks Human Relations Council in Pennsylvania. She helped victims of discrimination file complaints and she founded a Hate Crimes Task Force to promote tolerance. For her efforts, white supremacists branded her a "race traitor."

Jouhari, who is white, endured endless harassment and terrorism at her home and her job by neo-Nazis and Klansmen. Her picture and address were posted on the internet. A depiction of her office exploding into flames was posted on a website with the warning that race traitors would be hung. Jouhari and her daughter fled their home in fear for their lives.

The Center represented Jouhari in two separate administrative actions filed with the Department of Housing and Urban Development against her harassers. One action was a damages hearing against Ryan Wilson and his neo-Nazi group ALPHA HQ, the host of the threatening website. The other action was a complaint against Roy Frankhouser, the Grand Dragon of the United Klans of America.

The judgment against Ryan Wilson and ALPHA HQ was $1 million. The settlement with Klan leader Roy Frankhouser was a little different, however.

The Klan leader agreed to attend 80 hours of sensitivity training, perform 1000 hours of community service, broadcast fair housing public service announcements on his public access television show "White Forum," and pay damages and penalties to Jouhari and her daughter. He also agreed to publicly apologize to the mother and daughter and to refrain from harassing them in the future.