N.S. council approves resolution on Nike
Council passes resolution to request town entities refrain from buying products due to perceived anti-police sentiment
NORTH SMITHFIELD – The Town Council heard plenty from local residents Monday night – about their beliefs that the panel should not make itself a battleground for outside political issues by approving Council President John Beauregard’s resolution saying the town should not purchase Nike gear because of its support for former NFL football player, Colin Kaepernick.
The opponents to such a move included adults, local students and some local mi- nority residents along with a few visitors from other communities. Only one person, WNRI radio talk show host John DePetro, voiced strong support for Beauregard’s non-binding council resolution.
But Beauregard was joined by two of his peers, Claire O’Hara and Paul Zwolenski, in approving the boycott request by a 3-2 vote, with members Thomas McGee and Terri Bartomioli opposed.
O’Hara said she was “very proud we have so many people,” attending, adding “I respect what you say and I will fight for your right to say it. And people that know me, know that I would.”
But she also took exception with comments from some of the speakers and the symbolism of “Black Lives Matter,” on some of their clothing. “I say all lives matter,” O’Hara, a retired local teacher, said. “My family is three nations and in this town I cannot remember a time when a minority chose to come into this town that was not accepted wholeheartedly,” she said.
“As a teacher, to me I wanted to reinforce in my students that your heritage is
important. You embrace it. Learn about it and make sure you write down so that your children will tell their children,” O’Hara said.
O’Hara argued she has never seen racial issues in the town and disagreed when some speakers argued that the resolution would make North Smithfield, a town of approximately 96 percent white residents, appear less accepting of minorities.
“I listened to your remarks and I respect them, does it make me look at things through your eyes, yes it does. But I’ve heard remarks about this town, and that this one thing makes us a bunch of people that have no tolerance for minorities – that’s wrong,” she said.
Zwolenski offered a view that Beauregard’s resolution posed a difficult decision for the town, but noted he knew Beauregard to be an honor-
able member of the community as a retired Rhode Island State Police officer and he was willing to listening to his views as well.
“I could be wrong but I don’t think there is a soul in this room that doesn’t love our country. We’ve all made sacrifices. Some much greater sacrifices than others,” Zwolenski said.
“I am a son of an 80 percent disabled veteran of World War II who was a civilian employee in the Pawtucket Police Department,” Zwolenski said. “He so wanted to wear that uniform. My brother became a police officer in the Pawtucket Police Department,” he added.
“99.9 percent of police officers are good people that want to go home to their family and their family wants them to go home to them,” he said.
Zwolenski pointed out the local students who spoke as showing the town’s future was bright, but also noted that “our cemeteries are full of
heroes, whether they be law enforcement officers or veterans, those who came home and their lives were changed forever.”
Zwolenski said he didn’t know Kaepernick but did know Beauregard.
“He’s an honorable man, and we watched this evening when people signed up, he allowed them to speak longer than 2 minutes and he also allowed people to speak who were not signed up so I believe he’s a true believer in freedom of speech,” Zwolenski said.
“Right or wrong, whether you agree with his opinion, he has the right to say that as does Colin Kaepernick. Everybody has an opinion, everybody is entitled to it. Neither of them are wrong,” Zwolenski said.
Melissa Flaherty, a former Town Council member and a former school of the School Committee,” said she had spent most of the day thinking about the upcoming meeting Monday and had sought to get a copy of the resolution, which she said had not been available in advance.
“I think it is despicable.
This is not good government,” she said.
Her husband, John, also a former member of council, told the crowd that “this resolution is not who we are in North Smithfield,” and also called it an “embarrassment.”
Tarsha Geoghegan, a parent of an eighth grader at the middle school, said she came to North Smithfield because she liked the town but now has had that view turned around, because of the Beauregard’s resolution. She explained how her son asked whether he could still wear his Nike gear to soccer practice.
Beauregard said there has been a lot of “misinformation out there about exactly what this resolution is, and what it is not,” and went on to explain what his resolution would do.
“This resolution is a request. It’s not an ordinance or some type of requirement. There will be no action taken if the town department chooses to purchase any Nike products. They won’t get a phone call from me. It is just a request – that’s all it is. So nobody is ordering the town, the town is not taking a position about not purchasing Nike products as a result of this,” he said.
“It’s just that we’re making a simple request and that is all it is. There’s nothing more to it. And also this has nothing to do with anyone taking a knee. Everybody who got up there and started discussing about how we’re against Colin Kaepernick taking a knee and the whole football issue disrespecting the flag – that is not even what this is about. That argument is taking place on another front by other people and it’s not my argument. If you think that’s what this is about you have been misinformed,” he said.
“And it is not an attempt to inject the town of North Smithfield into a national debate. You might be surprised to hear this, but I support the football players and any other athlete that wants to knee during the National Anthem. I support any form of peaceful protest – I feel it is their right whether I disagree with them or not, I support their right to do it,” he said.
“I have a very different perspect about this than most of you. Colin Kaepernick has made numerous derogatory comments about the police. He as referred to the police as pigs by wearing socks with pigs dressed as police officers when he knew the press would pick up on it. He compared modern police to the runaway slave patrol of the 1700 and 1800s. He has sent financial aid to an individual who murdered a police officer and now lives in exile in Cuba,” Beauregard said.
“The people belong to be the face of Nike are the fallen police officers. Just last night a police officer was killed in the line of duty because he responded to a suspicious person call and walks up to car and he gets killed. He’s a hero. Colin Kaepernick is not thinking about that and Nike should be ashamed of themselves for using somebody as Colin Kaepernick as their front man,” he said.
“That officer last night sacrificed everything his. His family today is dealing with the fact he sacrificed everything. That’s where I stand and I that’s why I put this resolution up,” Beauregard said before his peers voted.