Editor:
The sign on Highway 243 as one enters Idyllwild says “Welcome to Idyllwild, Home of Adventure, Music Art & Harmony.” I believe the town monument is also titled “Harmony.”
I had always thought that the word “harmony” had a double meaning for our town. We have harmony among our friendly citizens and harmony in our wonderful music. We are, indeed, a special town, beautiful in scenery and beautiful in spirit.
So you can imagine how mystified I was when I saw those two pictures in the Town Crier on page A6 on Oct. 3 showing a Trump 2020 banner fronted by sign-carrying protesters, and then a photo of the banner being taken down.
I must say, I agree with Kerry Manos’ letter to the editor titled, “Disturbing photos.” The Town Crier did our town a disservice by not adding why the sign was removed. It gave the impression that it was the act of the protesters that caused the removal, rather than “The banner violated Riverside County Ordinance 806” as was explained by the editor’s note at the bottom of Mano’s letter.
The Town Crier intimated that it agreed with the protesters and disagreed with the right to exercise free speech. Please, Town Crier, try to keep objective and neutral. You have a diverse readership and pandering to one side will not increase your membership and only divide our townspeople.
With the 2020 election fast approaching, it is important for us as a community to tolerate all opposing views with courtesy and respect and to remember that every American citizen has a right to his/her view.
Legal campaign signs should not be run over with cars, destroyed, or defaced as we had seen in the run up to the 2016 election. To my knowledge, this did not happen in our town.
Sure, march and protest, which is the right of every American citizen, if it makes you feel better, but remain in harmony with those who have an opposing view, and realize that they too, have a right to free speech.
Let’s not let the hateful actions of a few people in other cities influence us. Be kind to one another. After all, if Americans in a small town can’t get along, how can we expect countries to get along and live in harmony?
Maureen Rose,
Idyllwild
