Hate has No Home Here–an open letter to our community

There is so much sad and terrible news these days that some of you may have missed the news of a recent local event. You may have missed the June 19th piece in Gothamist, aptly titled, “Report of Nooses In Van Cortlandt Park Met With Indifference, Bronxites Allege”. A couple, out for a stroll in the park, near 242nd Street, came upon several rope nooses hanging from trees. They were disturbed and alarmed by this on the eve of Juneteenth. The police who responded to the scene did not open an investigation and the people there were told that the hanging ropes were part of celebrations with piñatas.This letter is to urge our community, elected officials, and NYPD officers to take events such as these far more seriously. We are living in a time when the POTUS and his enablers use hate and division to cynically manipulate American voters. The so called “dog whistles” to white supremacists in this country have become loud and clear.In the end whether it’s a swastika scrawled on a local synagogue, a confederate flag waving, or nooses swinging from our beautiful Bronx trees- now is the time to respond. Let everyone know that here in New York, in the Bronx, and in Riverdale, HATE HAS NO HOME.We demand a full investigation.

Action Item

Please contact our precinct to make sure the police investigate thoroughly. The 50th Precinct station house is located at: 3450 Kingsbridge Ave. The phone number is 718 543-5700. If you call, you will get a message that they are not at their desks however you can leave a message with Community Affairs which can be reached by pressing 3.