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Heated Debate
The debate of Roadside Memorials is still a heated topic. Many people get offended at seeing roadside memorials. The news reports state that they are "eye-sores." Wilted flowers and flat balloons are just "trash littering up the roadways." Even police officers report that they are "hazards."
So today I read an editorial on a roadside memorial in Oregon that hits all the hot buttons! It is a marker for Rachel Soto. She was suspected of robbing three businesses at gun point. The most mundane : a 7-11 for a pack of cigarettes - and - the worst: $100 from a local business. She was allegedly on drugs and was a petty thief.
Police shot her as she sat in the back of a parked car, where she allegedly pulled a gun on approaching officers. The family placed a cross in her memory at the site where she was killed. But the neighbors feel that a memorial and associated activity such as "drive-by visits" serve no point in " memorializing a place where an apparent bank robber was shot..."
These quotes may sound hard & callous at first. They do have a hint of fear and stereotyping with the comment "drive-by visits" and "Bank robber". The neighbor quoted does seem to be afraid, but with a reason to be angry. The report states that in one incident family/friends visiting the cross have "climbed into his boat, parked in his driveway, and they started tearing stuff out of it." So the neighbor moved the cross away from his property out to a major intersection.
Of course the family of Rachel Soto were angry to see that the memorial site was moved. So much so that they started a fight with the neighbor. Now the neighbor sleeps with a loaded gun.
-- I see how wars get started --
Oh my GOD! What I hear in all of this is disrespect for one another. The neighbor is afraid & angry - Not in my backyard! So he moved the memorial. The family/friends are wrapped up in the loss and are not being sensitive to the other people affected by this tragedy.
Everybody is concerned for what is theirs
-- what about the others...??
Obviously they each have their opinion - my opinion is that they are all really missing the point. The memorials and our reactions to them, are stating to our society that something is wrong. Please pay attention! This is not just happening to one person - outside of my immediate circle - this is an ailment in our society.
The reason the memorial is displayed in public is to get a subconscious message across:
-- Help me do something to prevent this from happening to the next family! --
So today I read an editorial on a roadside memorial in Oregon that hits all the hot buttons! It is a marker for Rachel Soto. She was suspected of robbing three businesses at gun point. The most mundane : a 7-11 for a pack of cigarettes - and - the worst: $100 from a local business. She was allegedly on drugs and was a petty thief.
Police shot her as she sat in the back of a parked car, where she allegedly pulled a gun on approaching officers. The family placed a cross in her memory at the site where she was killed. But the neighbors feel that a memorial and associated activity such as "drive-by visits" serve no point in " memorializing a place where an apparent bank robber was shot..."
These quotes may sound hard & callous at first. They do have a hint of fear and stereotyping with the comment "drive-by visits" and "Bank robber". The neighbor quoted does seem to be afraid, but with a reason to be angry. The report states that in one incident family/friends visiting the cross have "climbed into his boat, parked in his driveway, and they started tearing stuff out of it." So the neighbor moved the cross away from his property out to a major intersection.
Of course the family of Rachel Soto were angry to see that the memorial site was moved. So much so that they started a fight with the neighbor. Now the neighbor sleeps with a loaded gun.
-- I see how wars get started --
Oh my GOD! What I hear in all of this is disrespect for one another. The neighbor is afraid & angry - Not in my backyard! So he moved the memorial. The family/friends are wrapped up in the loss and are not being sensitive to the other people affected by this tragedy.
Everybody is concerned for what is theirs
-- what about the others...??
Obviously they each have their opinion - my opinion is that they are all really missing the point. The memorials and our reactions to them, are stating to our society that something is wrong. Please pay attention! This is not just happening to one person - outside of my immediate circle - this is an ailment in our society.
The reason the memorial is displayed in public is to get a subconscious message across:
-- Help me do something to prevent this from happening to the next family! --