To the Editor:

Statues and monuments symbolize people and events of our culture and our country. They are public. They are commissioned, raised, and maintained with public funds. They serve a purpose that was determined in large part through public meetings and other forms of discourse. We, in Newtown, are aware of this process as we have been engaged in the throes of public debate over the Sandy Hook memorial for some years.

If statues and monuments are raised by the public, their continued presence and existence in any location should be determined by the public. There should be notice, opportunity for public discussion and a vote, either by the representative body (Council) or the public at large (referendum).

No one elected official should have the summary power to strip symbols of significant people or events that were created by the public without resorting to public process. These actions show little respect for the people and debase the system of government which is the basis of our communities.

It goes without saying that recent acts of vandalism, tearing down our nation’s statues and monuments through violent action, is criminal conduct which must not be sanctioned. It would be absurd for me to expect the people who are participating in these activities to demonstrate any duty to the public. However, it is equally unreasonable to expect a government to protect our rights who fails to assert its authority to protect our public property. If you were looking for logic in recent events, it seems you have found a paradox.

Communities have a right to erect, maintain, and remove the statues and monuments it chooses. It is the essence of our first amendment rights. However, the expression of that right is only achieved by honoring the process by which it is preserved.

We must not allow a small group of incendiary people to usurp our rights. We are a government of the people, by the people, and for the people. All the people.

Andrew J. Buzzi, Jr

38 Obtuse Road, Newtown June 15, 2020