Statement from Mayor Jerry Tolley regarding the death of George Floyd
Though I cannot know exactly what you are feeling, my heart is broken over the tragedy of George Floyd’s death. The continued injustice and violence that occurs every day to our friends and neighbors of color needs to end. We support the peaceful protests occurring in the nation and across the world demanding an end to police brutality, racial injustice, and inequality. The police brutality seen in Minneapolis and the fear it creates is not something we, as citizens of Elon, will accept in our Town. We, your elected officials, and I, your Mayor, will not accept people being targeted because of their color or their beliefs.
Recently, we experienced an act of hate in our community with the destruction of a menorah at the Elon Chabad. This does not represent the Elon I know, and it can’t be what Elon is known for. We cannot, and will not, tolerate these types of actions against people simply because of their race, ethnicity or religion. We strive to be a community that embraces our differences and rejects intolerance. We want people of all backgrounds and walks of life to feel safe and secure in this community, and to know that they are welcomed and respected. We want to have conversations where people can freely express their concerns, so that we can all work to understand the problems that we all face, and become part of the solution, not part of the problem.
As Mayor, I commit myself and our town to having these conversations, and to working to end racial, ethnic, religious and gender-based injustice and inequality. However, we need the help of everyone to achieve this goal. Please talk to us. I guarantee that your concerns will be heard, and that together we will work on creating a community, and a country, where we can all be safe, welcomed, valued and proud to be a part of.
For a copy of the statement, please follow the link below.
Statement from Mayor Jerry Tolley Regarding the Death of George Floyd