Moments of encouragement

I am writing to share two things that have encouraged me amid the uncertainty in our nation. The first is that on Jan. 29, when I was protesting downtown with 600 other people in support of my refugee and immigrant family and friends, Spokane police were respectful and helped facilitate the large crowd crossing streets. They even closed a city block so that we could protest outside Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers’ office.

This is in contrast to other police action around the nation. I sincerely thank our policemen for protecting our citizens in this way while we exercised our right to free speech.

Secondly, at City Council on Jan. 30, I was encouraged by the number of people who attended on behalf of those threatened in our community and the dignity and respect with which Council President Ben Stuckart conducted the meeting.

Thank you to our City Council for taking a stand and saying we will not participate in registering anyone on the basis of any religion. This is one step on a long journey toward justice and peace for all.

Naomi Hobson

Spokane