People I know in Canaan, a rural town near Skowhegan, Maine, received this charming notice in the mail recently. It appears to refer to this event organized by a group associated with one of the most vocal of the (now retired) mascot keepers.
As you can see here, the event was created by the infamous white nationalist who was fired from his job as town manager of Jackman, Maine based on racist posts to social media.
Some people who I respect say, Why give the white supremacists this kind of free publicity? And I get that. So, the name of the fired town manager is in an image, not text that could be searched, and I won't be putting his name in the Labels (tags) section of this blogging platform either. But, here's why.
Because Maine for Mainers and "The Way Maine Should Be" are dog whistles for white supremacy.
And white supremacy beliefs lead to tragically cruel behavior toward people of color. Like this, which happened this week in Skowhegan:
Is it ironic that KFC, a brand associated with a stereotypical old white Southern guy, is in the same store as Taco Bell?
Is it unrelated that Rep. Jared Golden has his office staff in DC tell constituents that harassment of people of color by ICE "doesn't really affect Maine's 2nd District" and thus "isn't really on his radar" because it's mostly white, mostly rural Maine?
I think the failure of Democrats like Golden and Nancy Pelosi to stand up against Nativist, racist harassment of people of color is a huge factor in today's climate of fear for people of color.
Even little children of color who suffer from chronic, life-threatening illness.
When my (white) friend's (white) daughter with seizure disorder has one in public in Skowhegan, people rush to help them. I've been there to witness it, more than once.
Is Skowhegan the only or even the most racist place in Maine? Hardly. But it racked up a national reputation for itself due to the many ugly, violent statements and threats made by the Skowhegan "I__n" Pride group during the 2015-2019 period of struggle to replace their offensive high school mascot.
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| Photo credit: Carolyn Van Houten/The Washington Post via Getty |
What does it say about where we're headed when brown toddlers are penned up in stinking pens at the border? The same thing it says when Katelyn and her friends mock a Black father for praying in Arabic as his little girl seizes while he prepares her medication.
White does not make right.
Compassion makes right. Care for other human beings makes right. Courage to stand with targeted groups makes right.
Maybe you have wondered what you would have done during the historical tragedy of the Holocaust that persecuted Jewish people in Europe and resulted in 6 million being murdered -- many in concentration camps.
Now you know, because you're doing it.
I want so badly to say this is unbelievable, but it isn't any more.
ReplyDeleteTo all mt friends of color; know that the majority of people in our area are NOT racist idiots! We will continue to support you and work to make thing better, safer, and happier for you all. We care.
Amen!!!!
ReplyDeleteTrump is one man. Others do this shit because they agree. Either we believe that all of us are full human beings, with inalienable rights, or we start backing ourselves into prison camps, group by group. You or your family got brown eyes? It's all on a slope, and your time will come if you don't speak up now.
ReplyDeleteThank you for shedding light on the true intentions of the far right group. They say there is not a race requirement, yet their leaders goal is to create a white ethno state. So are people of color and minority religions welcome? also they say they didn’t send out the flyers, but they certainly are enjoying the publicity.
ReplyDeleteOfficial Maine for Mainers statement:
ReplyDeleteIn case there is any doubt, let me make abundantly clear no letters were sent to anyone from our page or organization.
We've contacted the authorities to make clear that our member was defamed, and now we see how this is being presented as a false recruitment effort designed to intimidate.
You're just a basic liar. Tom didn't organize that event and he didn't send out those notices. You didn't even bother to fact check any of this. You are being lazy and irresponsible and you are getting innocent people hurt. You need to stop steeping yourself in constant hate (hate you have to invent) in order to feel superior to others. Cultivate a true and good life instead of getting a virtue high from pure lies. May God truly have mercy on your soul.
ReplyDeleteHell is a very real place and your lies about innocent and good people should have you TERRIFIED. In all sincerity, please repent and come to Christ.
ReplyDeleteTaco Bell and KFC are both owned by Yum! Brands out of Louisville, KY, along with several other national chains. That's the connection between them.
ReplyDeleteOn another note, I am so distressed that racism has now come out in the open in Maine. I don't know that, other than to visit relatives, I ever want to set foot there again. At least here in Kentucky, people have learned, for the most part, to keep their racism in check -- well maybe not the prejudices against Muslims, but that's another issue.
As far as I know, we have not have a white supremacist call the cops on black people being human anywhere in this former slave-owning state.
I'm appalled by this incident. To attack a human being obviously caring for his child, should be a universal language; regardless of words or appearance. I was raised by the maxim "if you have nothing nice to say; say nothing" I believe many people were as well. We do live in a country where we can speak our minds and beliefs, but that doesn't mean we always should. The childish, uncensored outbursts of the current POTUS,and other figures who should be diplomatic and representative of all constituents has emboldened voices who have should know they nothing good to say. My best to Ahmed Shaur, his daughter and family.
ReplyDeleteI shared this on my FB, after my friend who lives in Maine shared it. Now, of course, there is someone who is commenting that she cannot see that any of this ever happened/nothing to support it. Is there other information out there about this? Some people like the person who commented on my post just seem to have too much time on their hands. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteThanks for helping to shed light on these people. It's important that they are not the ones who get to decide "What Maine Should Be." To that end I would ask you to share www.MaineForMainers.com with your readers. Since the FB group never reserved the URL it gives us a chance to claim the name for everyone. Hopefully, with enough links and hits, if people search for "Maine for Mainers" they'll find the webpage first and not the FaceBook group.
ReplyDeleteKeep up the good work it is appreciated.
I live just a few houses from this address. Some one sent me an invitation. I had my own BBQ that day. I assure you, there wasn't a huge turnout for this, the only news crew was channel 7.
ReplyDeleteIt's not because of a deluge of spam that you are moderating comments, it's because you are a bunch of antifa communist fascists
ReplyDeleteAnti American, anti Christian, anti white, anti ANYTHING traditional or normal group of loons who cant push your hate when facts keep popping up in your comment section. Hmm, bet my comment will be marked as spam by the fascist censorship crew running this page.
Dear Anonymous, Not sure how you define deluge but, yes, I actually get hundreds of comments a month that are spam and must be sifted through to find actual commentary on my posts. Yours is getting published because it is an actual comment, however ridiculous. "We" cannot be both antifa and fascist as you label "us" (for the record, "we" are neither one). In future, why not find the courage to sign your name to comments on this blog? If for no other reason than it will make it much more likely that "we" can find them in the deluge of spam.
ReplyDelete