GREENFIELD — For the crowd that gathered on the Greenfield Common Monday night, the message was clear: Nazis, racism and white supremacy aren’t welcome here.
About 70 people attended a vigil organized in response to the events in Charlottesville, Va., where one woman died when a man drove into a crowd of those counter-protesting a white supremacist rally at the University of Virginia.
Trystan and Arjuna Greist organized the vigil in Greenfield and said they felt the need after seeing what had happened in Charlottesville. The two felt it was important to stand in solidarity with the counterprotesters and also condemn racism, white supremacy and Nazism. The two brought their biracial son, who they said amplified their previous activism.
“The need to speak up and not be silent feel even more vital for us,” Trystan Greist said. “We can’t be silent in the face of racism. We need to stand up not only for ourselves as white people with a conscience, but we have to stand up for our son and his rights and freedom.”
The event started around 6 p.m. The group was peaceful and did not attempt to block sidewalks or the street.
Trystan Greist said they left the gathering open-ended. Some people sang, chanted and cheered as cars honked and people waved. Many brought signs including some that said “Black Lives Matter,” “Love Trumps Hate,” “All are welcome here” and “Bigotry is not patriotic.”
Many people brought their children to the event, like Sarah Rashad, who brought her son, Spirit. She carried a tapestry of a black woman carrying a child and said it was important to show up and remind onlookers that the problems of white supremacy and racism are not the responsibility of people of color to solve alone.
“As a person of color I’m really disheartened and just scared and angry,” she said. “It’s been going on for a long time. I think the actions we’ve been seeing over the past year really speak to the fact that we’re not in a post-racial America. I really felt it’s been put on the shoulders of people of color to speak out and correct it. It’s the work of everybody.”
Angela and Michael Rowan also brought their two sons, Andrew, 9, and Riley, 12 to the gathering. The two said they felt it was important to bring their sons to this and they discussed the events in Charlottesville with their children ahead of the vigil.
“We wanted to be able to stand with our community and say we won’t tolerate racism or neo-Nazism or white supremacy,” she said.
Andrew and Riley both had strong opinions on the violence in Charlottesville, but also on the sense of community created on the Common Monday night.
“I’m glad to know there are people here who care about what happened,” Riley said.
Edie Heinemann brought her Black Lives Matter sign to the event and said part of the battle is talking to people who have opposing viewpoints and challenging their ideas.
“We have to just stand up as white people and be inclusive and question our own assumptions, and show solidarity and try to work toward a more compassionate society,” she said.
Many of those at the event said the events over the weekend are not an isolated issue that is far away.
“We’re also very cognizant of the fact that white supremacy and racism are nationwide problems, it’s not just a Southern problem,” Arjuna Greist said. “Our entire culture is steeped in white supremacy, and we’re all part of the problem so we want to be part of the solution.”
Reach Miranda Davis
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