Duke nemesis Beth Rickey dies in Santa Fe hotel room
The Lafayette woman so often credited with bringing down neo-Nazi David Duke died destitute in Santa Fe after suffering from health problems for more than a decade. Quin Hillyer of The Washington Times today wrote about Beth Rickey’s courage in his column, “Beth, what can we do? Against David Duke, a tale of courage”:
Beth Rickey collapsed and died alone on a motel room floor in Santa Fe on Friday night, a pitcher of ice tea in her hands. She was just 53. She had been ill for 13 years, mostly with a mysterious virus she had picked up on a church mission trip to Mexico. Debilitated, she had run through her life savings. Philanthropic help was on the way, but not in time.
It was a sad end for one of the bravest women you could ever meet. There had been a time, back in the early 1990s, when journalists and academicians, Jewish leaders and evangelicals, conservative and liberal, all proclaimed her a heroine. They were right.
... written by KatherineIV , September 15, 2009 - 11:39 pm
As I recall, Beth also worked in Dud Lastrapes's campaign for mayor of Lafayette, and also in his administration. They don't make Republicans like her anymore, apparently.
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