227
It took two years for the Vermont Human Rights Commission to determine that the Bennington Police Department failed to help protect the state’s only Black lawmaker.
Rep. Ruqaiyah “Kiah” Morris filed a formal complaint with the commission in 2019, one year after she stepped down from her legislature duties due to being threatened and harassed by local white supremacist Max Misch,
VPR reports.
“This investigation recommends that the Commission find reasonable grounds to believe that the (Bennington Police Department) discriminated against [Kiah Morris] … and [her husband] James Lawton, on the basis of race and color,” the 54-page report said.
Misch had been harassing Morris with threatening messages on social media for two years before she decided to resign in 2018. The politician reported her concerns over the threat Misch posed to her and her family to the Bennington Police but said she was ignored.
Investigation Concludes Vermont Police Endangered Then-Only Black State Legislator Kiah Morris Who Was Forced to Resigned After Months of Racial Threats
In 2018, Rep. Ruqaiyah “Kiah” Morris, the then-only Black female lawmaker in Vermont, stepped down from her duties after suffering months of racial threats and harassment. A year later, she and her husband, James Lawton, filed a formal complaint with the Vermont Human Rights Commission.
Kiah Morris announced earlier this year that she wouldn’t be seeking re-election in the Vermont Legislature. (Image courtesy of Facebook)
At the time, Morris stated that her family had faced “continued harassment and seek legal remedies to the harm endured.” Following the announcement, the Vermont Attorney General’s Office and the Vermont State Police promised they’d look into Morris’ claims.
Clueless! Not for the first time, or even the second, you cut off clues for the crossword puzzle in the May 12 issue. One line, if not two, is totally missing. Please, please double check this before the paper goes to print. Thank you very much. Nan Moses
Missing Income Sensitivity Thanks for the very detailed article about Burlington s new assessments and ever-increasing property values [ Gilded Age, May 5]. Speaking to actual homeowners while also doing real analysis made it both personal and precise. Surprisingly, there are several key aspects that were not covered: First and foremost, Vermont has income sensitivity for the education portion of the property tax for those with incomes of up to $138,000. For folks with incomes of less than $50,000, the income sensitivity provision even covers municipal taxes. Thus, for folks with limited incomes, the assessed value is often moot since people pay based on their income.
Don t miss the big stories. Like us on Facebook.
BENNINGTON â Former state Rep. Kiah Morris said Tuesday that a change in leadership at the town managerâs office and Bennington Police Department are necessary to bring about systemic change in town â among her first public remarks after her family settled with the town over a discrimination-related BPD complaint.
Morris, her husband and their son filed a complaint with the Vermont Human Rights Commission in 2019, alleging that Bennington police failed to adequately investigate racially motivated harassment against their family because of their race and color. Morris, who is African American, mentioned the harassment when she announced her resignation as a Bennington state representative in 2018.
Graffiti Art by Mark Rosalbo When the pandemic drove us indoors last year, many Vermonters turned to baking or movie bingeing. Mark Rosalbo turned to house paint. Lots of it. Suddenly working at home and sharing the broadband with his wife, Cindy, and four kids, the Randolph resident said his household was insanely busy. So he found himself puttering in the basement and painting on cardboard, scraps of wood, whatever. An insurance broker by day, Rosalbo is also a musician and composer who studied theater arts in college. But before COVID-19 arrived, he said, he d never made visual art. Little did Rosalbo know that, within a year, he would be exhibiting his pandemic paintings in a gallery. He would also inadvertently be involved in a bit of a ruckus, one fueled by this country s deep political divide and the disinformation that widens it.