August 24, 2017
Rindge, NH
The membership of the Rindge Faculty Federation (AFT #2433) approved the following statement today for release to the Franklin Pierce University community and to the public:
As unionized University faculty, we are deeply concerned with recent events over the past two weeks in Charlottesville and elsewhere. As teachers, advisors, mentors, and role models, we believe it is necessary and appropriate to join with AFT President, Randi Weingarten, who issued the following statement on August 12, 2017 in response to the torch-light march by white supremacists at the University of Virginia:
“The atrocious display of racist hate in this march is antithetical to our values as Americans. It is no surprise that white supremacists take their filth to college campuses; they understand at a visceral level what all teachers know—that education is their enemy. We are alarmed that, as the Southern Poverty Law Center and others, including us, have repeatedly said, hate feels empowered in the United States right now. We applaud the elected officials, including Charlottesville Mayor Mike Signer, who have stood up to that hate and clearly expressed their contempt for these actions and the ideology that underlies them.
“We stand with these elected officials, with the people of Charlottesville and with the University of Virginia community in condemning the hatred and bigotry being espoused by the white supremacists who have marched into their town.”
The Rindge Faculty Federation stands firm against all forms of racism and bigotry. Moreover, we openly acknowledge that we in New Hampshire are not immune to such ugly behavior, as borne out by the widely viewed racist and anti-Semitic remarks of Keene resident and white nationalist, Christopher Cantwell. The sale of t-shirts at this summer’s Cheshire County Fair mocking Black Lives Matter (reading ‘Black Flies Matter’) along with existence of identified hate groups in New Hampshire, all indicate a continuing undercurrent of racism and anti-Semitism right here in our own neighborhoods.
Therefore, the faculty of Franklin Pierce University’s College at Rindge, as represented by the Rindge Faculty Federation, reiterate their staunch opposition to all forms of racism and bigotry. Our campus is not immune and it is time for faculty, administrators, staff and students to recognize this reality, confront it and engage with it if we are to honor our mission “to prepare students to become confident, knowledgeable individuals and leaders of conscience.” This moment demands moral clarity, and the RFF is looking forward to joining with the University and with student organizations to commence the difficult campus-wide dialogues and learning experiences necessary to combat the insidious forces of division and hatred.