New Gloucester s first Black selectman says it s time to talk about racism pressherald.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from pressherald.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
New Gloucester selectman speaks out as recall effort continues
In a guest column in the Lakes Region Weekly, George Colby says he won t apologize for a comment that wasn t racist to begin with.
By Emily BaderLakes Region Weekly
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NEW GLOUCESTER Unapologetic New Gloucester Selectman George Colby responded to his critics in a newspaper column this week, calling an effort to recall him reflective of the “cancel culture” that is “infecting” the country.
George Colby is a member of the New Gloucester Board of Selectmen.
“I stand accused of racism for a comment that was not racist,” Colby wrote in an open letter published in the Lakes Region Weekly. Colby was referring to a Dec. 3 Select Board meeting during which, at the end of the Pledge of Allegiance, he said, “Liberty and justice for all, for everyone. Even us white folks!”
New Gloucester selectman says detractors have ‘malicious’ agenda
George Colby said the effort to recall him reflects the “cancel culture” that is “infecting” the country.
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“I stand accused of racism for a comment that was not racist,” Colby wrote, referring to a Dec. 3 selectmen meeting when at the end of the Pledge of Allegiance, he said, “Liberty and justice for all, for everyone. Even us white folks!”
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Colby said that since his comment “wasn’t racist, I’m not going to apologize for saying it. I exercised my freedom of speech and expressed my dismay at the state of America, my frustration that people are trying to tear down America.”
335 residents signed the petition seeking to remove George Colby, following comments made at a December Selectboard meeting that petitioners deemed racist.
New Gloucester Selectboard: Member’s comments were ‘offensive and inappropriate’
George Colby s comments at a Dec. 3 meeting do not represent our beliefs, nor do they represent the beliefs of our Town, our citizens and our employees, read the Dec. 19 statement.
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NEW GLOUCESTER Selectboard members Karen Gilles, Linda Chase, Tammy Donovan and Peter Bragdon call Selectman George Colby’s comment from a Dec. 3 meeting “offensive and inappropriate.”
“Let us be unequivocally clear: we do not condone, agree with or endorse the comments made on December 3rd by Selectman Colby,” the members said in a Dec. 19 statement posted to the town’s website. “Rather, we condemn them. They do not represent our beliefs, nor do they represent the beliefs of our Town, our citizens and our employees.”