Hate Has No Place In Manchester
I recently released a statement calling for civility in online forums. My call to action was immediately met with personal attacks, not only directed at me but also at my four children.
Below, you will find my response to those vile accusations and a link to the statements made by a local Manchester resident.
I am reaching out to you as a father grappling with the challenges of the past couple of days, especially the last 24 hours. These moments have been particularly trying for me as a parent and a community member.
I extend my heartfelt gratitude to those of you who took the time to comment, respond, and report the distressing remarks made on a post I shared in the Manchester Community Forum calling for civility in this election. The comments were not only misinformed but also dangerous, filled with unfounded accusations against my family, our abilities as parents, and the very legitimacy of our existence.
To be clear, this is being perpetrated by one individual, not by my opponent or her supporters. She is a dedicated and committed community member. Although I’m disappointed with the tone and language in some of the letters and online statements about my candidacy, I’m committed to fighting for a Manchester that represents everyone and will continue to do just that.
Over the past year, our family has faced numerous death threats, particularly after publishing our first kid’s book - A Kids Book About Gay Parents. These threats, both public and private, prompted an immediate response from those who knew our family. However, due to the nature of the public comments at the time, we decided to remove them because they were posted (by the thousands) on our personal social media accounts. The recent comments from someone who is, in fact, a resident of Manchester reopened wounds and brought back harrowing memories from just a few months ago.
However, deleting comments and pretending they never happened only perpetuates the issues we face as a family. Instances like these occur more frequently than we might realize, affecting those who don't look, act, or present like the majority in our community.
Don't get me wrong, every hurtful comment takes its toll, but the love and support from some community members helped ease the emotional burden. I've discussed removing the post with the moderator or hiding just the comments. But based on the above context, I asked to leave the comments up, because it’s important that we fight back against these types of attacks as a community.
As I emphasized in my initial statement as a candidate, perhaps foreseeing an event like this, "we must elevate our dialogue with face-to-face conversations, elements often lost in online forums."
Once again, I sincerely thank those who stood up against this by the measures you took. Please help me remain vigilant for my family and others like us. Like many of you, my family is my most significant source of pride, something I never believed possible growing up. My children mean everything to me. So, understand that if an approach to behavior like this isn't working or is unfazed, we must try a different approach.
On behalf of my family, I implore you not to sweep situations like this under the rug any longer. We are better than this. I know it, I've seen it, I've witnessed it. I know deep in my heart we can do better.
I will not be making any further statements about this issue but will talk to anyone in person or over the phone if you'd like to learn more about my campaign. You can reach me directly at (802) 768-7900 or jonathan@westformanchester.com.
Many thanks,
Jonathan West
*The referenced post and hateful comments can be found on the Manchester Community Forum on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/wC3sc6qJtxUoAzDf/?mibextid=K35XfP
