Reverend John Balcom, a WW2 vet, at the podium enthralling a young listener
While the Amherst Memorial Day parade portion of the remembrance is a brief affair, taking only 10 minutes to clear town center, the ceremony at the War Memorial Field is a lot longer and far more somber.
But the solemn event was still punctuated by unscripted reminders of what our freedom represents: the rights of children to grow up in a land that respects individuality, allowing you -- nay, even encouraging you -- to stand out from the crowd.
A young spectator checks the volume levels on a speaker for the Town Manager
A photogenic young lad strikes a prayerful pose
Amherst town leaders do what leaders do: lead the parade thru Amherst Town center
Girl Scouts and a dog
Rounding a corner at War Memorial Field
Good sized crowd in attendance
VFW and Legion Color Guard, APD salute
Representative Ellen Story reminds the crowd that 750,000 Americans perished in the Civil War
Amherst Regional High School Chorale
AFD Chaplain Bruce Arbour gives keynote address
That high school chorale seems disproportionately white. Hmmm...
ReplyDelete"Stand out from the crowd" like Dylan did?
ReplyDeleteLots of guys bled & died to keep this a "free country" -- where one has the right to say things, even offensive & obtuse things, without fear of punishment.
The First Amendment is intended to protect unpopular (and often hateful) speech -- people will not only pay to hear the speech they wish to hear, but often stand in long lines for the ability to do so.
(How much are concert tickets going for today???)
No, it is the person who says that which we detest whom we must protect -- counter his/her/its "bad" speech with our own rights of free speech and our "good" speech, but still protect & defend the person saying that which we most disagree.
The most chilling thing about the Dylan Disaster is the precedent that is being set -- that a group of students whom self-identify on the basis of race may -- with impunity -- use threats of violence to silence a student of another race who says something they don't want him to say -- and that such student will then also suffer consequences from the school as well.
That can be used AGAINST the Black students just as easily as it was this time used for them. Maria G likes neither embarrassment nor bad press, and this whole "racism in the high school" thing has been both. Regardless of if the high school is or isn't racist, I suspect she is rather upset about it being said it is.
So word could come down to silence any Black student or parent who complains about racism. To silence them the same way that Dylan was silenced.
Never forget that the WW-II guys saw true evil in Europe. We need to honor their sacrifice by not letting it be here.
nice events but didn't you just criticize vince o'connor for standing out from the crowd and doing what he thought was right at town meeting.
ReplyDeleteSarcasm requires its own special font.
ReplyDelete