I was reading the news today and I came across an article that shook me down to my very foundation. A neo-Nazi group is acquiring land to build their headquarters right here in Maine. They have a history of disrupting LGBTQ+ events and spreading white supremacist rhetoric. The idea of them building a home base in my home state makes me feel horrified, paralysed, and powerless.
The presence of this kind of hate is too big of an issue for any one of us to solve alone. I am sick with fear, and unsure of how to best support and protect the LGBTQ+ community and other vulnerable communities in Maine. So I wrote a letter to my state senator (Senator Jim Libby) to voice my concerns and ask for advice. I also sent this letter to my state representative (Representative Kimberly Pomerleau), and since this feels like a huge issue, I sent this letter to my representation in Washington D.C. (Senator Angus King, Senator Susan Collins, and Representative Chellie Pingree) and my governor (Governor Janet Mills) as well.
These are the people that have been elected to represent me, as well as others in my town and state. Therefore, as a citizen of their state/district, I have a right and a responsibility to voice my concerns to them.
Here is the letter that I sent. If you feel as strongly as I do about the presence of this kind of hate in our state, then I hope you also write to your representatives about it. You are more than welcome to use this letter as a template/jumping off point.
"Dear Senator Libby,
I am writing to you today with extreme concern. I just read an article from the Southern Poverty Law Center (attached below) about a neo-Nazi group building their headquarters in Maine. This group has disrupted three LGBTQ+ events so far in Ohio, and plans to build a white supremacist community in Maine where they can strategize and train.
I know that the presence of this group in Maine is not illegal, and I understand that their right to express their viewpoints, however hateful I might find them, is protected by the First Amendment. However, I cannot help but feel sick to my stomach with fear.
I have always known Maine to be a welcoming place for the LGBTQ+ community. We were one of the first states to legalize same-sex marriage by the popular vote (a campaign that I worked on). We have banned conversion therapy for minors, provide a third gender option on legal documents, and have abolished the gay panic defense, all of which other states like Florida have not done. And now we are to be home to a neo-Nazi group that has targeted the LGBTQ+ community in the past.
As a member of the LGBTQ+ community, I guess my question is this: how can we (as private citizens and as a state overall) protect and support the LGBTQ+ community in Maine with a hate-group headquartered so close to home? What about the Black community in Maine? The immigrant community? The Jewish community? How can we best support the growing diversity of Maine in the face of this adversity?
I am feeling paralyzed and helpless over what to do, so I appreciate any advice or actionable steps you can think of.
I am hoping you are having a wonderful Tuesday, and I look forward to your response.
Thanks,
Veronica Druchniak"
I am hoping to receive responses from each of my elected officials, and I will keep you updated with what they say. This issue may be too large for me to face alone, but I hope that together we can face down white supremacy and anti-LGBTQ+ hate in Maine. I am also wishing you all a wonderful Tuesday.
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