A Statement From The Greenwich RTC, submitted Jan 10, 2021
The Greenwich RTC unequivocally condemns violent rioters masquerading under the false guise of peaceful protestors. America has a long history of effective, righteous and peaceful political activism that has advanced the causes of freedom, equality and democracy.
It is with profound sadness that we have watched our constitutionally protected “right of the people to peacefully assemble” routinely perverted into unlawful, shameful and embarrassing acts. These acts perpetuate divisiveness in our country, sow the seeds of discord and degrade our democratic norms.
The radicalization of the extreme elements of both political parties over the last several years has led to this point in our history where grievances manifest themselves in the violent and reprehensible events experienced this week in Washington, and the destructive and violent episodes experienced throughout the summer in many of our great American cities.
While national issues dominate the news, Greenwich Republicans and our elected local and state representatives take pride in being a local, grass roots organization that focuses on issues that matter most to our community. We encourage positive and inclusive community engagement, and we are hopeful that the events of this week represent a nadir in our national and local political discourse from which will arise an improved focus on the important issues impacting all of our residents.
For instance, Greenwich Republicans have been out front in the effort to push for comprehensive ADA compliance throughout our school system. Despite the existence for thirty years of the Americans With Disabilities Act, our schools continue to spend taxpayer dollars on “nice to have” items while neglecting ADA mandates. This is not only unfair to members of our community with disabilities, but it leaves us open to litigation risk. Currently, there is an investigation into Old Greenwich School by the regional Boston Office of Civil rights due to our non-ADA compliance. Greenwich cannot be truly inclusive until ALL of our residents are treated equitably.
Additionally, a Democratic initiative out of Hartford wants to take away the local planning and zoning power of Connecticut municipalities. Centralizing planning and zoning authority in Hartford would lead to additional efforts to concentrate more government control in our state capital. Fortunately, our Republican state legislators are already coordinating their efforts with other elected officials to thwart this initiative and maintain local control of planning and zoning.
Most importantly, our goal is to make sure that our citizens will continue to benefit from the ongoing prudent financial management that has been the hallmark of Republican fiscal policy and stewardship over the years.
So, while there are elements of our local Democratic party that continue to be fixated on national affairs, Greenwich Republicans continue to work hard to ensure that we fight for our community and our constituents on the issues that have a direct impact on their day-to-day lives. We are here to serve you. We are not here to pander to you.
God Bless America.
Sincerely,
Dan Quigley
RTC Chair