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Love And Tolerance

Community Members Unite In Peace During Demonstration

Dozens gathered at Tracy Plaza next to City Hall in Jamestown on Wednesday for the “Not In Our Town: Demonstration For Love and Tolerance.” The event was held in response to the rally last week in Charlottesville, Va., turned violent. P-J photo by Eric Tichy

Throngs of community members holding signs and waving flags gathered not in protest, but rather in peace on Wednesday night in downtown Jamestown.

Tracy Plaza was the site of the “Not in Our Town: Demonstration for Love and Tolerance,” which was held in response to the rally last week in Charlottesville, Va.

Susan Meara, organizer of the event, welcomed the crowd and explained what the event was for.

“I am a grandmother who wants to make the world better for her grandchildren,” Meara said. “We are gathered here in this place tonight to stand up for human dignity and decency in response to the sickening events in Charlottesville.”

She said it was not a mistake the event was first supposed to be held at the Robert H. Jackson Center, due to the things Jackson stood for and did. She said the place promotes equality, fairness and justice.

Jamestown resident Dianne Peterson, middle, holds a sign Wednesday in Tracy Plaza during a demonstration. “It’s time for us to get together to realize that racism and the bigotry that has been going on for centuries — it’s time for it to stop,” Peterson said. P-J photo by Eric Tichy

“We who believe in the inherent worth and dignity of all human beings will not sit in complicit silence when any form of supremacy rises up to demonize and terrorize people who do not belong to their cult,” she said. “This is not a political response — it’s an American one.”

Mayor Sam Teresi also spoke, asking the crowd to come in closer.

“Closer to me and closer to each other,” Teresi said. “That’s what this is about, right?”

One young lady, holding a sign which said “Love Thy Neighbor As Thyself,” stood next to him as he gave his remarks.

Teresi offered well-wishes from Gov. Andrew Cuomo, saying he unfortunately could not attend. He then welcomed the crowd to the Jamestown Municipal Building, or as he called it, “The People’s House.” Tracy Plaza was designed to hold these types of events, and he was glad to see it used in such a way, Teresi said.

A young girl stands next to Jamestown Mayor Sam Teresi in Tracy Plaza on Wednesday while holding a sign. P-J photo by Katrina Fuller

Teresi said he was in New York City when the events in Charlottesville happened, but as he watched and listened to what was happening, he was horrified.

Teresi said he is thankful that he lives in a city that cares. However, he said he is also thankful that his children have grown up so he doesn’t have to go home and explain why hate is in the world, as he did on the day of Sept. 11. During that time, he and his wife sat down and explained to their children that, “In time, good always prevails over evil.”

“I also told them at that time that it is important for us to stand up in the face of evil,” Teresi said. “If we see examples of hate, bigotry, racism and white supremacy and all forms of evil, if you see something, you need to say something. We need to stop this.”

Greg Rabb, Jamestown City Council president, said he had been asked to speak at the event and was thrilled to do so.

“I got the invitation like everybody else to come out and show the rest of the world that we don’t tolerate hate in Jamestown, that we care about everybody and we welcome everybody,” Rabb said. “I think it’s important to send the message that Jamestown doesn’t want to see anything like what happened in Charlottesville.”

The city asked the organizers to move the event to Tracy Plaza for safety reasons.

“We were concerned that if the crowd got too big at the Jackson Center, we just couldn’t tell if there would be spill over into 4th Street,” Rabb said. “Our major concern was public safety. The other reason I think was because this is the place where we normally hold these kinds of events. I think it says something when you do it in front of City Hall because, even though this is not sponsored by the city, it shows the city is totally behind it.”

Dianne Peterson, Jamestown resident, said she joined the rally for a variety of reasons.

“It’s time for us to get together to realize that racism and the bigotry that has been going on for centuries – it’s time for it to stop,” Peterson said. “We’ve got to get together as one. We have to be in prayer. It just hurts me to my heart to see America falling apart.”

Peterson brought a sign with her that had the words KKK, racism, bigotry and white supremacy crossed out.

“It says ‘Not In Our Town,” she said. “Prayer and love – that’s my town.”

Abby Arnone, local seventh-grader, attended the event with her sisters and her mother, Lisa. She said it was the first time she had attended such an event, but felt it was important to be there.

“No matter what race you are, you’re not different from anyone else,” Arnone said.

Lisa Arnone said she brought her children because she wants them to grow up loving everyone and being kind. Rather than following the crowd, she wants them to have their own beliefs and fight for what is right.

“You can’t just sit back and watch things happen and say, ‘Well, I wasn’t a part of it,'” she said. “You’ve got to promote change if that’s what you want.”

Arnone said she was glad the event was planned in Jamestown because she wouldn’t want to take her children to a demonstration in a bigger city. Being in Jamestown makes her feel a bit safer, Lisa Arnone said.

While some might think the event was political, she said it wasn’t.

“This isn’t really about politics, this is more about being a decent human being,” Lisa said.

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