It has been an unusually windy spring, including this past Sunday when hundreds shrugged off COVID-19 protocols and knelt shoulder to shoulder at the flagpole, honoring the life of George Floyd and others who have perished at the hands of unchecked police officers. We feel the proverbial winds of change, as well, blowing through our lives, pushing us to finally see, hear, feel the anguish of those who are oppressed, repressed, suppressed, and challenged in ways that white people rarely experience.

These winds have been blowing for centuries and the people of our town and cities across the world are at last heeding the message carried on these powerful gusts of anger.

This is a town that occasionally needs to be taken by the collar and given a good shake. It happened after 12/14 when awareness around gun violence was raised. We are shaken once again as protests here and afar prove we are feeling not a breeze but a hurricane of change. It is impossible to take a knee for nine minutes and not feel the pain of injustice and racism to the very bone.

People of color nationwide must be heard, and heartfelt sentiment cannot stand in for the experiences of those whose lives are impacted every day, everywhere, because of the color of their skin. Those whose lives are not confronted daily with fear because they are brown or black need to listen closely, hear the voices of import, and be sure that it is translated into meaningful discourse. Our voices can fill the silence that has crushed progress and promoted racial inequities.

It is critical, when protests flag, that officials at all levels of government continue to hear voices demanding that now is the time to right the wrongs that generations of ignorance have allowed.

When protests dwindle, turn up the volume on voices that need to be heard, and support organizations that facilitate forward movement.

The Equal Justice Initiative (eji.org), the Public Justice Center (publicjustice.org), The Sentencing Project (sentencingproject.org), and Northside Achievement Zone (NAZ) in Minneapolis (northsideachievementzone.org), the city where these winds gained strength on May 25, are just a few of many groups requiring financial aid to do the essential work of equality and justice.

Incremental change, as seems historically the mode of action, is not acceptable any longer. Say the names, speak aloud regardless of your heritage, and make a difference. We cannot let the shame of silence linger.

Newtown may be 90 percent white, but it stands 100 percent behind right.