First published in the Nov. 3 print issue of the Outlook Valley Sun.
I have been shocked by the appearance of several hateful signs and bumper stickers that have started showing up around our town. There is a strangely worded sign that showed up in a median that had a cutesy Halloween theme, with bats and ghosts and gravestones, as it asks, “Witch Way to VOTE NO WAY For Partisan Activist Octavia?”
This sign would be funny if it weren’t truly scary. I can almost imagine some angry, hateful mom crafting these bats and ghosts at her kitchen table. There are bumper stickers showing up in different places with messages such as “LCF children cannot trust Octavia” (Octavia in creepy dripping blood font, of course) and “Octavia supports defunding LCE law enforcement.”
It is unclear as to why Octavia should not be trusted by LCF children, it is my understanding she is a teacher and I would think that would be an asset for a school board member. I can’t speak to the piece about defunding law enforcement, but that does not sound relevant to our schools.
I would really like to know if the other candidates have anything to do with these messages, or if they are supporting this in any way. I find these tactics vile regardless of whether I am planning to support a candidate or not. I do not want to see this kind of ugliness from any side, especially from candidates I am supporting.
I am wondering if these sign creators are even members of our community, or if they have children in our schools. I hope these are actions of just a few hateful individuals, and not significant to our larger community, of which I have always seen as a warm and welcoming place. I hope that we can all treat each other with respect and decency, even when our ideas differ. I will certainly be digging deeper to try to understand where this is coming from and what each of these candidates really stand for.
Stacy Craig
La Cañada Flintridge
