Waupaca Common Council issues Statement of Solidarity
By Angie Landsverk
Sophie Butkiewicz discovered the handpainted Black Lives Matter sign she made defaced when she stepped outside her family’s home last Friday morning.
“I looked over and saw the Black Lives Matter words were spraypainted over with black,” she said.
The same thing happened to the sign in her neighbor’s yard on Waupaca’s Lake Street.
That sign says “Black Lives Matter” on one side and “I am with you” on the other side.
Someone spraypainted black over the words on both sides of the sign.
Butkiewicz’s mother called police to report the incidents.
“I made sure to tell the officer we appreciate him and all he does,” Butkiewicz said. “He was very respectful and very understanding of why we had the sign out and why we were upset by what happened to it.”
The officer told her he will keep an eye out to see if other signs in the community are defaced and if he can figure out who did it.
Both Butkiewicz and her neighbor placed the signs in their yards around the time of last month’s community solidarity event.
That event took place June 13, on Waupaca’s city square.
“I’ve lived in this town my whole life,” Butkiewicz said.
She said minorities have not felt welcomed here.
It is important to give them a microphone, allowing them to be leaders and part of change, Butkiewicz said.
White citizens should be supportive in moving forward, she said.
Both Butkiewicz and her neighbor kept the defaced signs in their yards.
She planned to make more signs for her family’s yard.
City Administrator Aaron Jenson described what happened to the Black Lives Matter signs as disappointing.
“It’s vandalism,” he said. “People know what they should and should not be doing.”
Many people have different opinions right now, he said.
What needs to continue are good dialogues and conversations, Jenson said.
“We want to be known as a community that’s welcoming to everybody,” he said.
City’s Statement of Solidarity
Waupaca’s common council approved a Statement of Solidarity last week.
The council’s action took place during its July 21 meeting.
Jenson said the city decided to issue the statement due to “everything going on in the country” the past month.
By issuing the statement, it hopes to promote the nation, state and community in which people strive to live.
The city says it supports an environment and community that does not condone any form of racism or violence.
It believes all should be treated in an inclusive and equitable manner.
That is regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, socio-economic status, experience, ability and disability, age, religion, geography, national origin, ideology, perspective and other characteristics that make people unique.
The city also believes “the collective thoughts, ideas, experiences and knowledge of all individuals collaborating together make us a stronger and more unified community and will help us all to achieve our goals.”
Jenson noted there is a mural on a downtown building that says, “You belong in Waupaca.”
He said those are values the city’s staff and its elected officials have.
“I think that (solidarity) statement is really about common sense to us,” Jenson said. “We all grew up learning to treat others how you want to be treated.”