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I was reading the coverage of the “Bloomberg Gun Giveaway” when I was struck with a feeling of intense deja-vu. I re-read the current paragraph and there it was; the quote from Fairfax Supervisor Penelope Gross “I swore to uphold the law, whether I like it or don't, and I don't."
I had read almost those exact same words earlier this week. I had been reading a book chronicling the Civil Rights Movement. It illustrated how that, time and again, local officials had proclaimed loudly about how the civil rights rallies were technically legal but they didn’t like it and would find a way to stop them.
Amazingly, the article went on to say that Ms. Gross had actually researched whether or not the county could prohibit groups from using community meeting rooms simply because of their political views. I was stunned! Apparently, the right to free-speech and assembly mean no more to her than does the right to keep and bear arms.
The struggle may have changed and racism may have given way to elitist intolerance, but the message remains the same “Your kind ain’t welcome here!” Supervisor Gross’s predecessors of 50 years ago would be proud of her.
I was reading the coverage of the “Bloomberg Gun Giveaway” when I was struck with a feeling of intense deja-vu. I re-read the current paragraph and there it was; the quote from Fairfax Supervisor Penelope Gross “I swore to uphold the law, whether I like it or don't, and I don't."
I had read almost those exact same words earlier this week. I had been reading a book chronicling the Civil Rights Movement. It illustrated how that, time and again, local officials had proclaimed loudly about how the civil rights rallies were technically legal but they didn’t like it and would find a way to stop them.
Amazingly, the article went on to say that Ms. Gross had actually researched whether or not the county could prohibit groups from using community meeting rooms simply because of their political views. I was stunned! Apparently, the right to free-speech and assembly mean no more to her than does the right to keep and bear arms.
The struggle may have changed and racism may have given way to elitist intolerance, but the message remains the same “Your kind ain’t welcome here!” Supervisor Gross’s predecessors of 50 years ago would be proud of her.
