This error in judgment will end up, as it should, causing embarrassment to those responsible and those who are making excuses for them.
Leesburg Today
April 16, 2007
By Martha S. Baine, WaterfordI have written to Gov. Tim Kaine to ask him under what authority state troopers were massed at Patrick Henry College in Purcellville, Loudoun County, on April 12 to greet the Soulforce Equality Riders.
The riders, a couple of score of unarmed young people who have been riding across the nation stopping to talk at Christian colleges about being gay and lesbian Christians, were met with over 100 law enforcement officers–local police, county sheriff’s deputies, and state troopers.
The riders stood quietly, sang, spoke to the press, two of them attempted to deliver a dinner invitation to the students of the college, were arrested, and later released. No other college on the trip has met them with such an aggressive and overwhelming show of force. Nor were any students allowed out to speak with them–this by a college whose stated mission is to groom the future political leaders of America.
As a Virginia citizen and taxpayer I want to know:
A) Why state troopers were allowed to participate in this recapitulation of massive resistance that made Virginia look as ridiculous as it did 45 years ago.
B) Why private entities can call out public law enforcement troops and what entitles them to such protection when there is no threat of public disorder.
C) Why none of the law enforcement groups worked with or even got in touch with Equality Loudoun or any local gay and lesbian advocacy group to acquaint themselves with the situation beforehand.
D) Who is going to pay for this massive show of force against peaceable citizens exercising their right of assembly.
It would be a well known fact to anyone who knew what they were talking about, anyway.
I think that “aiding and abetting” will turn out to be the correct term in this case. We expect more information to come out soon as they scramble to justify this mistake and dig themselves an even deeper hole. Watch for it.
In the past, the Riders have obstructed campus entrances, staged an on-campus protest without permission, and refused to leave when asked, which is tresspassing. They made it clear that they intended to tresspass again, and they did.
No-one stopped their assembly. Did they have a permit? Did they apply for a permit. The reason for the permits is to give the authorities a clear indication of how many people are expected to attend, so that appropriate facilities and security can be provided.
Now to answer a few specific questions:
A) The police were not ALLOWED, they were ORDERED.
B) All citizens are entitled to call the police if criminal action is threatened. Tresspassing is a criminal action.
C) It’s not their job. It is the job of the protesters to get a permit, and on that permit application give some idea of how many attendees there will be, so that proper security can be provided. Furthermore, they have no reason to believe you.
D) No-one opposed their right to peacably assemble. They were only opposed when they tresspassed on private property.
Hilarious!! It’s not the job of the police to properly conduct due diligence when they are presented with “tips” by an extremely biased source? They “have no reason to believe,” or even contact, the local civic organization that would be most likely to know what was going on? No, I don’t think that’s a very strong argument – in addition to displaying a profound ignorance of what Equality Loudoun is all about. Let’s hope that our local law enforcement agencies don’t share in that ignorance.
Since Jack seems unaware of how this works, the Equality Ride had been in contact with PHC since mid-January. They did communicate with law enforcement, and were completely transparent regarding what would transpire. What you saw, a peaceable assembly and symbolic act of civil disobedience, was exactly what they stated all along – assuming that PHC didn’t change their position and invite them on campus, as in the example just set by Messiah College.
All the rest is pure fabrication, and the taxpayers are entitled to know who is responsible.
So what were they to do, go to another extremely biased source? They were right to err on the side of too many than too few.
You still haven’t told me whether they had a permit, nor have you told me what injustices they are trying to correct.
Jack,
If you think we are an “extremely biased source”, you’re welcome to ignore us.
Aren’t you?