I have just returned from our peaceful 500-person march in Waterville to honor George Floyd, a black man who died at the hands of four Minneapolis policemen. Floyd cried for help, saying he couldn’t breathe while handcuffed, face to the ground with a knee on his neck.
Waterville’s police chief, Joe Massey, spoke at this march and emphasized that we are all in this together, that police are part of the community they serve and not some outside violent force. Earlier this week, Chief Massey took a knee for 9 minutes with protestors outside his police station. This was in solidarity with the outrage many of us feel that once again a black person in our country has been brutally murdered by police officers sworn to protect all citizens.
By standing with us instead of against us, by speaking with us instead of silencing our voices, Chief Massey has demonstrated that the Waterville police are part of our community. As we have witnessed these actions stand in stark contrast to police in other communities, lethally armed, wearing protective armor, tear-gassing peaceful protesters and shooting them with rubber bullets.
Chief Massey has shown that there is no need for violence if you have a relationship with your community, if you care about the people you are responsible for serving and protecting, if you know their names.
Thank you, Chief Massey, for joining our march with your fellow police chiefs from neighboring towns. Thank you for showing us how policing should be done.
Emanuel Pariser
Waterville
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