A plea for civility after disturbing incident at Republican standout
All through the streets of Acton, there are “Hate has no home here” and “Love thy neighbor” signs. Are there exceptions?
This past spring, local Republicans held a standout on Monument Square in front of St. Bernard’s Church to present our positive agenda to the community. Our purpose is to build awareness to passersby that there are patriots living amongst them, show current accomplishments, and during this season express support for local Republican candidates.
Each week we experience overwhelmingly positive responses, and the negative ones have been occasionally civil, but also many with unpleasant shouts and gestures.
Unfortunately, on one day we had a disturbing incident. A young woman got out of her car to berate us, screaming loudly for 10-15 minutes, with every other word being an expletive. After she left, she drove her car around Monument Square, parked her car in the road in front of our group, obstructing the flow of traffic, and beeped her horn continuously. As a car passed her and began to turn onto Bedford Road, it was involved in a collision with a cyclist. The driver later told police she hit the brakes because she thought someone was beeping at her. Thankfully the cyclist was OK, although shaken up. The police and emergency vehicles arrived and were very helpful.
As we all drive through the streets of Acton, there are “Hate has no home here” and “Love thy neighbor” signs. Are there exceptions? Unfortunately, overheated politicization is a virus that has not bypassed Acton — a word that ironically means conviviality and harmony, from the Latin “hearts together.” We understand that some people feel vehemently about current affairs, but we would like to put in a plea for civility and “turning down the heat.” This incident could easily have had a tragic ending.
Dolores and Frank Granato
Virginia Road
Lawrence Franko
Silver Hill Road
