BROOKLINE, MA — Several Brookline Select Board members condemned racist threats lobbed at their colleague Select Board Member Raul Fernandez, including a threat to burn his house down with his family in it.
"I do hope that these perpetrators will have to face some sort of ... punishment for these incredibly horrible things," Select Board Nancy Heller said during the Feb. 3 meeting. "It's not surprising given what's going on in congress ... I really hope the police will get to the bottom of this and punish them to the fullest extent possible."
Select Board member John VanScoyoc said he's at a loss at what to do, but indicated support for Fernandez.
"It calls for us to try to do some very, very difficult thinking about how can we in a free society, restrict in some way or at least respond in some way, to the evidence of hate," he said during the meeting. "It's hate as pure as complete as you can imagine to see the kind of language and the kind of threats that were leveled in his direction."
VanScoyoc said he wished he'd responded with a message of support earlier, and said would support Fernandez's response to those who are guilty of what was said to him online.
"He would have the full support without question of everyone on this board," he said.
The support from the board members came after Select Board Chair Bernard Greene read a letter addressed to the board from Fernandez's parents in Florida, condemning the hate speech, supporting law enforcement and noting that their son was working to improve relations with the police and the community.
What lead up to this?
In the days following the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, with images of a mob of Trump and white supremacy supporters breaking into the U.S. Capitol still raw, Select Board member Raul Fernandez called on residents to no longer allow the type of racism and intolerance that the Trump flag has come to symbolize.
During his comments, which clocked 5 minutes at the Jan. 12 select board meeting, Brookline Fernandez turned his comments briefly to local supporters of the former president including any police officers who might have at one time supported Trump.
"I hope that support has vanished in the wake of these events, particularly among law enforcement, because anyone who still supports Trump today and walks the beat with a badge and a gun is a clear and present danger to the rest of us."
He went on to urge community members to help ensure that inclusive policy priorities are reflected in leadership.
During the following select board meeting on Jan. 19, two police officers took to the mic during public comment, accusing Fernandez of unfairly characterizing Brookline police, saying just because some supported Trump, it did not equate them with white supremacy or racism.
"This kind of hatred for those with different opinions from your own is not what this country or this community is about," Police union president Michael Keaveney said.
Town Meeting Member and police Sgt. Casey Hatchett said Fernandez's comments crossed a line.
In the days that followed, Fernandez received racist and threatening messages that also voiced support for police.
"Due to comments made by detective and union president Keaveney and Sgt Hattchet that alluded to my son putting targets on every police officer's back they, in fact, did what they accused my son of," the letter read. "After their misconstrued statements, my son started to receive harassing calls filled with racial epithets, hate speech and terrorist threats, which are against the law and are prosecutable, such as burning his house down with him and his family in it. What type of self respecting person does this?"
That harassment and hate speech prompted the acting police chief to condemn the threats against Fernandez.
Fernandez is also a chair of a task force that is set to make recommendations to the town to re-envision police work in town, following the racial justice movement.
Jenna Fisher is a news reporter for Patch. Got a tip? She can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna). Have a something you'd like posted on the Patch? Here's how.
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