On Sunday night, dozens of people showed up in downtown Astoria, Oregon to stand in solidarity with Charlottesville after an act of domestic terrorism.
The residents of this small coastal town in Oregon gathered together to sing songs and hold a candlelight vigil in honor of the victims that were caught in an act of political violence when a car driven by a man from Ohio plowed into a crowd of counter protesters on Saturday, August 12, 2017.
The event was put together by an organization known as Indivisible North Coast Oregon (INCO). On Saturday, August 12, 2017 the organization’s website posted on their front page notifying the townsfolk of when and where the vigil would take place, saying:
“Stand with us in solidarity with Indivisibles nationwide and with our brave friends in Charlottesville who fight against white supremacy. We’ll stand together for respect and civility and against hate and bigotry. We will grieve, and we will stand together for America. Sunday, August 13, [at] 8 pm, outside the Astoria Post Office, 8th and Commercial. Bring flameless candles or flashlights.”
Directly underneath the header of the website is Indivisible North Coast Oregon’s mission statement and it reads “Indivisible North Coast Oregon (INCO) defends democracy by opposing authoritarianism, bigotry, and corruption.”
Indivisible North Coast Oregon was founded in response to the 2016 presidential election to oppose authoritarianism, bigotry, and corruption. The organization also demands “accountability and transparency in government and support American rights like equal justice, free speech, a free and independent press, and separation of church and state.”
Some of the basic principles of INCO include affirming the importance of defending democracy, resisting an agenda that will take America backwards, modeling inclusion and fairness, encouraging involvement in like-minded groups that value freedom, compassion, community, and responsibility.
However, INCO was met with some criticism:
It isn’t unreasonable to expect an organization that hosts honorable candlelight vigils for victims of white nationalist violence, to also condemn the actions of left wing organizations that incite violence.
The content on the Indivisible North Coast Oregon webpage is critical of President Donald Trump’s policies and agenda.
Nowhere on the INCO page do they condemn the actions of the group Anti-Fascist Action (Antifa) even though Antifa isn’t known for their peaceful demonstrations.
INCO was silent when Antifa attacked a journalist in Portland for filming, when Diablo Valley College professor and Antifa member Eric Clanton clobbered Trump Supporters with a bike lock, or when ANTIFA was throwing explosives into a crowd of people.
When discussing terrorism, violence, and politics, it is important to put aside partisan opinions.
These partisan glasses must be put aside in order to actually analyze the objective reality of current events.
Political leanings can subconsciously persuade you into disregarding important information all because it challenges your beliefs or understanding of the world. It is easy to gloss over the wrongdoings of those who are more politically aligned with you. As a result of this, we become inconsistent and we start betraying our principles.
* Logan Anderson is a working class political activist, political analyst, and YouTube content creator that has a passion in freedom and economics.
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