My son is a paramedic/firefighter and my nephews are also first-responders, so I am all for acknowledging the good works and life-saving actions of this group of public servants with the flying of a flag.

However, I am dismayed to think that the Bristol Town Council will validate the newly-formed group “Bristol County Concerned Citizens” by permitting a walk through Bristol, ostensibly to honor first-responders, but which really looks like a tit-for-tat response to the large turnout to the Black Lives Matter walk.

Being a supporter of Black Lives Matter does not automatically relegate one to being anti-first-responder. And the truth is that first responders in Bristol have always been rightfully well-acknowledged in the Fourth of July Parade, as well as other events In town.

If Bristol wants to fly a flag for first-responders, perhaps it should do so in October, which is already the month for First Responders Day (Oct. 28).

I want to think that the town leaders of Bristol can encourage and maintain a civil society that values all its citizens by exploring social justice issues and acknowledging the real story of minority and immigrant hardships in this area, and not by following a checklist compiled by “concerned citizens” who claim to not have a political agenda, but whose stated purpose is to support policies and candidates who agree with their narrow view of “traditional” American values.

Kathy MacLean
Bristol