DELCO UNITED
HUNDREDS ATTEND RALLY IN MEDIA TO OPPOSE WHITE NATIONALIST RALLIES
Rally Against Hate organizer Ellen Morfei addresses the crowd of more than 200 during rally at the Delaware County Courthouse in Media on Sunday.
This is Delaware County as the residents want it to be seen - not what was on display Saturday in Charlottesville, Va.
Several hundred people gathered at the county courthouse Sunday afternoon in a swiftly organized rally. As the initial outreach email stated, they were “concerned residents of Delco who find the recent events to be abhorrent and wish to stand against hate in Charlottesville and other communities.”
Heather Schumacher, of the Springfield/Morton area, said she put her 3-year-old daughter to bed Saturday evening and spent about 16 hours on social media reaching out to different groups. It has been all too common in recent memory that those “concerned residents” feel the need to “ramp up efforts” to address a variety of social and other issues, Schumacher said.
Ellen Morfei, another key rally organizer, wisely moved the crowd to the shaded area of the courthouse for the welcome.
“In Delco, we know how to love; we know how to show up. Thank you for fighting back,” Morfei told the throng.
The gathering quickly took on an interesting atmosphere of a rally, starting with a chant led by Rev. Peter Friedrichs of the Unitarian Universalist Church, one of several pastors from the local faith community who attended the rally. He had the crowd repeating, “Hate and fear have no home here.”
“It fills my heart to see so many here when you could be spending this Sunday afternoon at the shore or playing with the kids,” Friedrichs said. “But showing up is what we need – again and again and again. While we uphold the right to peaceably assemble, we condemn the violence that took place.
Friedrichs zeroes in on a comment made by President Donald Trump in reaction to Saturday’s rally and violence, in particular his mention of the “many sides” when it comes to blame for the violence. The comment made by the president elicited boos from the crowd.
The crowd was diverse in its age, gender and racial makeup. But two women of color spoke separately of their experience with power and frankness.
Jacquie Jones, asked by organizers to offer comment, is a practicing attorney in the county. She said she may be treated with respect or, conversely, looked at as if she does not belong. Jones drove home the point to the majority white audience that her life, and that of her daughters, “is not like yours.”
“This is not my grandmother’s civil rights movement,” Jones said. “When we move out of here today, we all move together,” adding the impetus to demonstrate against the social climate “is not something you just do today.”
Kelly Yiadom responded to Morfei’s invitation to anyone in the audience who wanted to speak. Her remarks were personal, yet similar to those made by Jones. A native of New York, now living in Upper Providence, Yiadom said she began her education as the only African-American child in her elementary school, and one of only a few in higher grades. Attending Swarthmore College, the minority status continued. And, she added, she was the only African-American when teaching at a Wallingford-Swarthmore school.
“When you are the only one, it can be uncomfortable. You have to adjust, be flexible, and try not to upset others. Take a moment to understand that,” Yiadom said.
Without question, the perceptions and experiences of everyone assembled are unique. Two speakers had, at one time, lived in Charlottesville. One said the town would respond positively, especially when students return to the University of Virginia. Another noted that racism was clearly demonstrated in the memorable past only a few decades ago.
Also prevalent throughout the rally and those who spoked was criticism leveled at the Trump Administration.
“We can put the blame at the top. (The white supremacists) were given permission. There is no more political correctness,” said Ellen Wineman of Nether Providence.
The sense of being among likeminded individuals seemed to empower speakers to be courageous and candid. James Mason, Media Area NAACP President, said, “The groups in Charlottesville don’t want to be called what they are – the Ku Klux Klan and Neo-Nazis.” They are thinly disguised wolves in sheep’s clothing, he added.
Much to the surprise of her mother, Media attorney Lisanne Mikula, Liz Hay – a Haverford High School senior – took the bullhorn for a closing comment.
“I want to say how important it is for parents to talk to their kids,” Hay said, implying topics such as these should be on the table. “It’s our turn to carry on the work and cultivate the message,” she said of her generation.
In the proverbial nutshell, the message was “spread the love and stop the hate.” With the dozens of organizations loosely formed and coalescing, more rallies, meetings, and social media outreach can be expected.