What happened in Fountain Hills last week was the exact opposite of what this country is supposed to stand for. Members of our own community were denied their First Amendment rights; by their own neighbors, no less.
In brief, a group of residents attempted to have a Black Lives Matter protest on June 10 and, due to threats of violence, elected not to hold the event out of fear for the safety of participants.
To be clear, we’re not weighing in on the politics here, whether it be the Black Lives Matter movement or conerns that outside entities might bring harm to this town. That’s for folks to hash out, as they certainly have been, elsewhere. What we are specifically addressing are the threats that led community members to feel unsafe in their own town while attempting to exercise their right to peacefully protest.
These young men and women even went through the extra effort of notifying local officials, including law enforcement, of their plans. They did this by the book, including taking precautions for COVID-19.
To those who say there were no threats made, The Times ran several of those comments in last week’s issue; and there are plenty more and plenty worse than what was published. And yes, despite claims to the contrary, many of these threats were made directly at the individuals planning to have a peaceful protest, their families and friends.
This happened in your own backyard, folks. No matter where you stand on the issues, it should be unquestionable that individuals have a right to gather and be heard, just as other groups did that very same day.
Amidst the comments received by The Times in the days that followed our coverage of these events, several expressed concern for how printing these stories made the town look. It’s a valid concern. But our job is to report the news, good or bad. In short, we just hold up the mirror. For those concerned about the town’s image, what comes next is up to you.
