'Love, not hate': Area residents gather to sing, talk about racial issues after violence in Charlottesville

After clashes between white nationalists and counterprotestors over the weekend in Charlottesville, Virginia, a group of more than 40 area residents assembled for a Love, Not Hate event Sunday in Cape Girardeau’s Common Pleas Courthouse Park.

Organized late Saturday night by the Rev. Renita Green of St. James A.M.E. Church, the impromptu gathering opened with a prayer, and residents expressed their emotions through speech and song.

Southeast Missouri State University professor Tamara Zellars Buck spoke about the First Amendment, detailing the legal intricacies of free speech and the importance of expression.

One piece, titled “Executive Orders,” was read by local poet Michael Council, aka Navigator.

Barbara and Carl Muench heard about the event through their priest. With relatives near Charlottesville, Barbara Muench said she was glad to see Cape Girardeau residents keeping the town in their hearts.

Michael "The Navigator" Council reads his poem "Executive Orders" during the Love, Not Hate rally on Sunday evening on the lawn of the Common Pleas Courthouse in Cape Girardeau.Laura Simon

Her husband described the gathering as somewhat inspirational and noted the importance of maintaining an open dialogue.

Most assembly attendees recognized the small local event wouldn’t solve the national issue of discrimination and instead focused on making an impact in the local community.

“What I’m hoping for us to accomplish locally is for us, as white people, acknowledge that white supremacy exists — even in our own community,” Green said.

Green hopes to host a series of teach-ins to help understand and dismantle white supremacy.

She said she believes a local impact can be made by confronting complicit, subconcious acts of racism.

Ramona Bailey sings "It is Well WIth My Soul" during a Love, Not Hate rally on Sunday evening on the lawn of the Common Pleas Courthouse in Cape Girardeau.Laura Simon

“Nobody here would say, ‘I’m a white supremacist.’ Nobody would, but we function in that system,” Green said. “Until we understand what that system looks like, we won’t have the tools to dismantle it.”

bmatthews@semissourian.com

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Pertinent address: 44 N. Lorimer St., Cape Girardeau, Missouri, 63701