Lexington C.A.R.E.S.Sept. 6 - What a glorious day it was for Lexington! We hope that next week, when Mr. Parker goes to trial for trespassing at Estabrook, people in our town will remember that day. We hope they will hold that reaffirmation of our values and our community in their hearts while the media focuses on others' demands that contradict that spirit.
So many people joined in the Lexington C.A.R.E.S. vigil in front of the Visitors Center on Sept. 6, to show that Lexington values all of its children, all of its families and our public schools! We estimate upwards of 350 people participated in our non-confrontational vigil, including children from babies to high-schoolers, young adults, parents, grandparents and new as well as longtime town residents.
We stood side-by-side holding signs in a line that stretched from the start of Hancock Street, across the front of the Tavern and Visitor Center, all the way to the corner on Meriam Street. Families brought their youngest children to picnic on the lawn behind us. The atmosphere was one filled with deep community spirit, in keeping with the urging of Rev. Bill Clark from The First Parish Church that we all "send love to the other side" of the street.
The day's vigil turned out well, despite our fears. As we started to gather, we were concerned there could be a high level of tension between the pro-Parker people rallying on the Green and those across the street in our counter vigil. Mr. Parker's supporters had heavily promoted their event through several anti-gay Web sites and leafleting at area churches. We believed the anti-gay groups might bus people in to Mr. Parker's rally from other parts of the state, as they had done for other events. But a wonderful thing happened on the way to the vigil. The difference in attendance of the two contrasting events turned our serious vigil into a celebration of community, that reaffirmed our town values of inclusion and welcoming classrooms for all children. It was wonderful for those who participated!
Now, we did not choose that day for such a vigil. It was not a time we would have chosen, since it was the night before school started and so many of us are parents. Furthermore, with the extent of the devastation that Hurricane Katrina had wrought in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast becoming so agonizingly clear, many of us felt it more appropriate to let the community's focus be on helping the hurricane victims. But given that the Parker support rally was going to happen, we felt strongly that we needed to show up and, by our presence and our signs, show everyone our town values of inclusion and safety for all children in our classrooms.
We appreciate that many of our elected officials were able to join us (state Sen. Susan Fargo, Jeanne Krieger, Hank Manz, Scott Burson, Helen Cohen and Tom Griffiths) and some of those who couldn't join us sent messages of support (Rep. Jay Kaufman, Rep. Tom Stanley, Norm Cohen, Tom Diaz and Olga Guttag). And of course, we are grateful to the clergy (Rev. Bill Clark, Rev. Judy Brain and Rabbi Howard Jaffe) who were present to offer their support.
We also want to acknowledge Capt. Charles Sargent of the Lexington Police Department and Carl Valente, town manager for their guidance in creating a peaceful event. And, our thanks go out to the entire Lexington Police Department for ensuring the safety of everyone involved.
We are so proud to live in Lexington, where our shared human dignity is celebrated and affirmed by such large numbers of fellow townspeople.
For more information, [please visit the Lexington C.A.R.E.S. web site or contact us].