Local Leaders Denounce Hate Stickers Posted in Peekskill
Local leaders from Peekskill, Ossining and Croton-on-Hudson gathered Sunday morning outside Mt. Lebanon Baptist Church in Peekskill to denounce hate stickers found last week in two different locations in the city.
The message of the stickers, the first of which was spotted by a transgender individual, was anti-immigrant white supremacy with a website that touts a white nationalist, white supremacist point of view, according to State Senator Peter Harckham (D/40th Senate District).
“Today we are here to simply say no to hate. No way, no how,” Harckham said to a crowd of about 50 local residents. “Not in Westchester, not in the Hudson Valley. It’s disgusting, it’s abhorrent, it’s cowardly. It’s against everything we stand for. Diversity is our strength.”
One of the stickers, reported Friday, was deliberately pasted over a Pride sticker at The Rift, a gaming store in Peekskill. Another sticker was seen earlier in the week on a pole next to 1 Park in Place. The Peekskill Police Department is currently conducting an investigation, according to Mayor Andre Rainey, who appeared at the press conference with the majority of the Common Council, including Councilwoman Vanessa Agudelo, who wore a tee-shirt that read “Always Anti-Fascist.”
“What good is a diverse city if we can’t appreciate diversity?” Rainey remarked. “We stand together as a united people in this city. With the great accomplishments we’ve made, we must send a message for the entire world to see – we will not tolerate hate in our community. Everyone is welcomed here, and I will continue to stand and fight for the rights of all, through love and unity.”
Displays of hate have also found their way into Ossining and Croton. A few weeks ago in Ossining, a noose was found in a waterfront park.
“This just can’t be tolerated,” said Ossining Town Supervisor Dana Levenberg. “We must come together to disavow these propagations of hate and stand strong in our beliefs that the goodness in our innate common humanity can and shall overcome.”
“We can’t let people do the things they are doing. We live in the greatest country ever. It was founded for its diversity,” said State Assemblywoman Sandy Galef (D/Ossining). “That’s what makes our country great. That what makes Peekskill so great.”
Besides elected officials, also represented at the event were the NAACP, Black Diamonds, Loft of Westchester, Mt. Lebanon Baptist Church and the Peekskill Hispanic Coalition.
“We stand up today to say we won’t tolerate it. We will stand up against it,” said Mt. Lebanon Baptist Church Pastor Rev. Gary Colter. “The love of God is stronger than anything in this world. There will be no hate in Peekskill. We in Peekskill will show the world how to love.”
Rick has more than 40 years’ experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, running the gamut from politics and crime to sports and human interest. He has been an editor at Examiner Media since 2012. Read more from Rick’s editor-author bio here. Read Rick’s work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/pezzullo_rick-writer/