Community members acknowledging local activists on the downtown mall during the candlelight vigil for
August 12th activists, led by Beloved Community Cville, 8/11/19. Photo credit: Kristen Finn
August 12th activists, led by Beloved Community Cville, 8/11/19. Photo credit: Kristen Finn
We're Not Going Anywhere!
We don’t know what will take place in the months and years ahead, but I have no doubt that our community will rally in support of those who may be targeted. The groups that have been scapegoated in the narrative about why America isn’t “great” are made up of individuals with names. People who are our friends, family, neighbors, community members, and fellow human beings. It’s our understanding that THEY are US.
When faced with tragedy, Mr. Rogers once famously suggested that we "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” This quote reminds me of the mutual aid efforts that arose amongst activists in response to the violence of the Unite the Right Rally of 2017. Many of us also turned to the slogan, “who protects us, we protect us!”, as we grimly realized that politicians, lawyers, and police officers weren’t going to protect us from the terrorism that we not only knew was coming our way, but proceeded to wash over our city like a tsunami.
Four years later, many of us recognized the same mob when it wreaked havoc on our nation’s capitol on January 6, 2021. We had no trouble understanding that insurrection was not only possible, but a logical extension of what we’d experienced in our city’s downtown.
Our city has a lot of experience with division, fear, and hate. “Anti-democratic” forces have been alive in our city since its founding in 1762. The amount of pain and suffering buried in the roots of this city is staggering. There are endless stories of enslavement, lynchings, segregation, restrictions, prohibitions, neighborhood destruction, etc. To learn some of this history go to belovedcommunitytours.org and hear it from people who lived it and/or have ancestors who experienced it.
Simultaneously, there’s always been a push for human rights and equality happening in our city, often led by average citizens. We’re a city full of survivors, helpers, and activists of all kinds. Many who’ve managed to maintain joy, dignity, and humanity despite decades of constant push back, oppression, and sense of threat.
We’re also a city full of people who haven’t yet faced the challenge of being treated as “other” and/or haven’t found a pathway to get involved in stopping hate and division. This might be the time for us all to come together.
Over the last decade, I’ve had the honor to meet many “ordinary” people in Charlottesville who have managed to choose love over fear and continue on living their values, even in the face of deep upheaval, threat, and uncertainty. How do we carry on with joy, dignity, creativity, and vision, despite it all? In honor of them/us, I’d like to add to Mr. Roger’s quote: “Look to those who have survived and overcome.”
Often those who have survived and overcome are grounded in Faith. It takes inner fortitude, truth seeking, and a courageous heart to counter those who gain power and profit from fear, anger, and division. It also takes strategizing, organizing, building trust, showing up, mutual aid, resistance, disruption, and sense of vision. It’s a lot of work, both internal and external, but we (the collective we) are worth the struggle.
Learning the hard truths of our city’s history can help us be better prepared for what’s coming next. Look to the role models who’ve gone before us (some are still amongst us today). Look to those who’ve demonstrated the ability to embody their values and ideals despite the odds, often due to a faith in something greater than themselves. We can choose to have this community’s back, everyone’s back, not just those who look like us or pray like us. No one can take that away from us, and … we're not going anywhere.
Elizabeth Shillue, Director
On behalf of Beloved Community Cville
When faced with tragedy, Mr. Rogers once famously suggested that we "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” This quote reminds me of the mutual aid efforts that arose amongst activists in response to the violence of the Unite the Right Rally of 2017. Many of us also turned to the slogan, “who protects us, we protect us!”, as we grimly realized that politicians, lawyers, and police officers weren’t going to protect us from the terrorism that we not only knew was coming our way, but proceeded to wash over our city like a tsunami.
Four years later, many of us recognized the same mob when it wreaked havoc on our nation’s capitol on January 6, 2021. We had no trouble understanding that insurrection was not only possible, but a logical extension of what we’d experienced in our city’s downtown.
Our city has a lot of experience with division, fear, and hate. “Anti-democratic” forces have been alive in our city since its founding in 1762. The amount of pain and suffering buried in the roots of this city is staggering. There are endless stories of enslavement, lynchings, segregation, restrictions, prohibitions, neighborhood destruction, etc. To learn some of this history go to belovedcommunitytours.org and hear it from people who lived it and/or have ancestors who experienced it.
Simultaneously, there’s always been a push for human rights and equality happening in our city, often led by average citizens. We’re a city full of survivors, helpers, and activists of all kinds. Many who’ve managed to maintain joy, dignity, and humanity despite decades of constant push back, oppression, and sense of threat.
We’re also a city full of people who haven’t yet faced the challenge of being treated as “other” and/or haven’t found a pathway to get involved in stopping hate and division. This might be the time for us all to come together.
Over the last decade, I’ve had the honor to meet many “ordinary” people in Charlottesville who have managed to choose love over fear and continue on living their values, even in the face of deep upheaval, threat, and uncertainty. How do we carry on with joy, dignity, creativity, and vision, despite it all? In honor of them/us, I’d like to add to Mr. Roger’s quote: “Look to those who have survived and overcome.”
Often those who have survived and overcome are grounded in Faith. It takes inner fortitude, truth seeking, and a courageous heart to counter those who gain power and profit from fear, anger, and division. It also takes strategizing, organizing, building trust, showing up, mutual aid, resistance, disruption, and sense of vision. It’s a lot of work, both internal and external, but we (the collective we) are worth the struggle.
Learning the hard truths of our city’s history can help us be better prepared for what’s coming next. Look to the role models who’ve gone before us (some are still amongst us today). Look to those who’ve demonstrated the ability to embody their values and ideals despite the odds, often due to a faith in something greater than themselves. We can choose to have this community’s back, everyone’s back, not just those who look like us or pray like us. No one can take that away from us, and … we're not going anywhere.
Elizabeth Shillue, Director
On behalf of Beloved Community Cville
