North Dakota Father Disavows White Nationalist Son in Powerful Letter

As we enter a new week with the shadow of the Charlottesville attacks looming, it's becoming increasingly apparent that those who know white supremacists must speak up to disavow their hateful views. Pearce Tefft has taken this to heart. His youngest son, Peter Tefft, was one of the white nationalists identified as being involved in the weekend's violence, a man who has a history of vehemently stating Nazi beliefs in his native Fargo, ND.

To stand against his son's participation in Charlottesville and his hateful views, Tefft wrote an impassioned letter to Fargo's InForum to make his stance clear. His thoughts were published early the morning of Monday, Aug. 14.

"I, along with all of his siblings and his entire family, wish to loudly repudiate my son's vile, hateful and racist rhetoric and actions," Tefft wrote. "We do not know specifically where he learned these beliefs. He did not learn them at home." Tefft went on to disown his son by stating that he is not welcome at home and the he prays his now-prodigal son will return after he "renounc[es] his hateful beliefs."

Tefft explained how devastating these beliefs can be in a family, alluding to their potential spread in small groups. He even shared a "joke" his son made about putting people "in an oven" for voicing opposing views. To this, Tefft closed his letter saying, "you will have to shovel our bodies into the oven, too." POPSUGAR has reached out to Tefft for comment on his letter and will update the story if we hear back.

A statement like this is not only an example of necessary public disapproval and disavowing of the recent events but a lesson to parents, friends, and leaders who have a connection to the Charlottesville tragedy. Tefft's words stand in stark contrast to the mother of James Alex Fields Jr., the man who has been charged with driving into the Charlottesville crowd, killing 32-year-old Heather Heyers. She spoke out Saturday to the Associated Press, defending her son by saying, "He had an African-American friend so..."

Tefft's letter even pales our own President's initial, paltry response and was released sooner than the President's follow-up remarks this morning, where he stated that, "Racism is evil and those who cause violence in its name are criminals and thugs, including the KKK, neo-Nazis, white supremacists and other hate groups."

In these troubling and often strange times, it's important to speak out and make it known that hateful actions or beliefs are not welcome and must be called out. Pearce Tefft's letter captures this in so many words — and is a lesson for all.