May 21, 2021
Tony Crawford, center, converses with members of the Sons of the Confederate Veterans during a protest on the Parker County Courthouse lawn in December. Weatherford Democrat file photo
When it comes to racial relations both in county and nationwide, conversations can go a long way in bridging the gap, locals say.
Weatherford Police Chief Lance Arnold, who joined the city as chief in 2017, said he has seen a lot of extremism on both sides of social issues, and wants to see leaders on both sides engage in some real conversations about issues, including equality.
âI believe one positive that has come out of the [defund the police] movement are real discussions about many of the social issues the police are routinely asked to address, that have little to do with the actual functions of the police â such as maintaining safety, enforcing laws and preventing, detecting and investigating criminal activity,â he said.
Dec 28, 2020
Editor s note: The year 2020 has been different, to say the least. As such, we decided to do our annual Year in Review a bit differently as well. This year provided some big issues, some less-than-pleasant news and some positive highlights sprinkled in between. While it isnât our goal to remind you of the bad times, we wanted to use this opportunity as a final door-closing to 2020 and celebrate optimistic expectations for 2021. From all of us at the Weatherford Democrat, we wish you a bright, safe and prosperous New Year!
The year 2020 started off with incumbents sweeping the March primaries in Parker County. Sheriff Larry Fowler moved on to the Nov. 3 election to face off against Libertarian Russell Hess after defeating three challengers in the primaries. Residents stepped up and stepped out to make their voices heard, and the early voting turnout surpassed that of 2016âs early voting numbers.
Dec 14, 2020
Protestors and counter-protesters gathered on the Parker County Courthouse lawn Saturday afternoon. The protest was organized by the Progressives in Parker County and Statue Relocation Team for the relocation of the Confederate statue.
The focus of everyoneâs mind during a Confederate statue protest Saturday afternoon seemed to be the impact gatherings are having on small businesses in downtown Weatherford.
The Progressives in Parker County and Statue Relocation Team organized the protest, which drew a large crowd to the Parker County Courthouse lawn demanding the relocation of the Confederate statue.
âAn unintentional event of us being up here is that we hurt small businesses,â organizer Tony Crawford said. âThis is Christmas season and we donât really want to do that, but we kind of feel like some of those businesses need to step out and speak for us.â