The mayor of the city I drive into for groceries:
A personal statement by me as the Mayor of Sandy and not a representation of feelings by our collective Sandy City Council:
The City of Sandy received notice today threatening legal action from the Oregon Health Authority if we don’t comply with the Governors Executive Order and cancel our annual Independence Day Fireworks display. My gut instinct is to fight this, but as your mayor I can’t allow your tax dollars to go to a costly legal battle with so many other demands on our city. Our Governor and her power-hungry bureaucracy have bullied our citizens out of being able to celebrate Independence Day. I am devastated to announce the celebration is cancelled.
Independence Day is more than fireworks and ice cream. It is the spark that ignited the most revered democracy in the history of the world. We celebrate because without it, we would have remained under the thumb of our oppressors and would have never inspired democracy and freedom in so many places around the globe. Without it, there would be no Constitution or Bill of Rights. Without it, we would not enjoy the liberty and freedom we have today. Or at least the liberty and freedom we are supposed to have.
I am more than disappointed that our Governor looks the other way as Portland’s “peaceful” rioters have turned that city into a warzone of boarded-up buildings, terrified commuters and lawless streets. While self-described anarchists set fires and deface private and public property, Governor Brown has turned her attention to stop families in Sandy from safely enjoying a sense of community we haven’t been able to share in many months. Apparently, a seven year-old with a sparkler is a greater threat to her political ambitions than an angry rioter pelting police with rocks and balloons full of urine.
We are Sandy, Oregon. Not Portland. Not Salem. The governor’s bully tactics to force you back into the shadow of fear and oppression are exactly what our founding fathers fought against when we won our Independence. I encourage all residents of Sandy to safely celebrate Independence Day neighborhood by neighborhood. Come together as communities in the way our founding fathers did and have the discussions about whether we will allow this tyrannical Governor to stop our personal freedoms, or whether we will insist on the liberty of freedom we are guaranteed. God bless you and your families this Independence Day.
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