BLM demonstration comes to Upper Jay

UPPER JAY | Robin Devine, a young black woman who moved to Keene two weeks ago and has yet to get a handle on her neighbors, was not sure what to think when she saw about 100 masked white people standing at a sharp curve in Upper Jay. "I'm new to Keene, so at first I was a little scared because I didn't know what (the gathering) was for," she said. The turn across the Ausable River forced her to slow and she had a chance to read the signs and hear the chants — deep in the heart of a new and remote locale, she knew she was among friends. "It warmed my heart," said Devine, who stopped on the opposite side of the bridge and was soon exchanging contact information with her new neighbors. "I haven't seen that many black people here, so I was happy they were safe and welcoming." The gathering was a response to the death of George Floyd, who suffocated last month under the knee of a Minneapolis police officer. The event has drawn protests across the country, from the nation's largest cities to lonely rural crossroads. "I hope this is not a fleeting thing," said Kristin Eaton of Wilmington, who came to Upper Jay with her family. She said in light of recent events it's no longer enough to support equality privately, and that citizens need to act, even if it takes them out of their comfort zones. "If we stay inside our own bubble we're part of the problem," she said. To some, the demonstration felt necessary but said progress seems to be lacking. Past demonstrations against excessive police force against African Americans have not been much of a deterrent. "We need justice for everyone, not just white people — but then we go back to the same old same-old," said Cheri Cross. Bobby Andrew, who has a summer residence in Upper Jay, said change needs to come at the polls, and will take the energy of people with divergent progressive causes, including climate change and the epidemic of school shootings. But civic unrest hasn't always translated to the ballot box. "I can't project if the response is different this time," Andrew said. Marcie Kobak, an attorney from the Hudson Valley, said the issue boils down to "basic human decency," a tenet that should be a given, but isn't. And progress on that front seems slow to come. "I have to remind myself to have hope," she said.

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BLM demonstration comes to Upper Jay

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