OKLAHOMA CITY: AFTER THE BOMB : Symbol of Compassion

President Clinton wore one. So did Billy Graham. They adorn the protective gear of rescuers, the badges of cops and the camouflage fatigues of military guards. They are ribbons of purple, yellow, blue, white, green and, of course, black, for the victims of the bombing of the federal building. “We felt there needed to be an outward symbol of caring and compassion,” said Diane Sizemore, former president of a 150-member civic group in Oklahoma City. The colors have special meaning: purple for compassion and the courage of the children; yellow for those still missing; green for prayers for the victims; blue for the state flag of Oklahoma; white for the innocence of the victims; and black for mourning.

Government Connections Severed...But Not Farm Aid

James Nichols may have avoided taxes, returned his Social Security card, renounced his U.S. citizenship and refused to carry a driver’s license. But he still wanted--and got--federal farm assistance. Nichols and his brother, Terry, were charged Tuesday as conspirators with Timothy McVeigh, suspect in the Oklahoma City bombing, in the construction of explosive devices in Michigan. On June 2, 1992, James Nichols mailed a certified letter to the Sanilac County clerk’s office. He said he was “no longer one of your citizens or residents of your de facto government and is a non-resident alien, non-foreigner, STRANGER!” But last month, the farmer from Decker, Mich. complained to his state representative that he wasn’t getting all the federal farm disaster aid he thought he was due. Nichols got $36,522 in payments between 1986 and 1994 for wheat, feed grains and disaster aid, according to a source in the U.S. Department of Agriculture.