Fighting for Change
In a town full of republicans, there aren’t many outlets to express a democratic political opinion without facing scrutiny. Many democrats in town have stayed silent and confided in friends of the same party.
For a while, if you wanted to be bold, slapping a “courage is being a Democrat in Carroll County” was the way to go. Everything changed in 2016 when Trump was elected president, a group that originally got its start at the local Denny’s had had enough and were ready to make themselves visible. The group rallies with the mission to bring “action to the community and nation that honors diversity, promotes equality, and it's inclusive, ethical, and just.” Every Saturday from 1 pm to 2 pm, rain or shine, a group of a half dozen gather on Main Street in Westminster and protest Trump as President. With flags flying and anti-Trump signs raised high, the small but mighty group is hard to miss.
Marty Hankins of Westminster Maryland, stood at the curb of the sidewalk with her Baltimore City flag held high. “I’m honoring Congressman Cummings today.” Cummings passed away on October 17th, 2019, at the age of 71 after falling ill. Back in September, President Trump was under scrutiny for his controversial comments about congressman Cummings and the city of Baltimore, calling it a “Rat infested” and accusing Cummings of being a “Brutal Bully.”
“My son and daughter-in-law and grandchildren live in Baltimore City. My granddaughter attends Baltimore City Public Schools. It makes my heart ache when I hear people say, ‘oh, I won’t go to the city.’ People’s perceptions just aren’t real. I went to the women’s March in January of 2017, and then I came home and said, ‘now what?’. I started looking online, and there’s a big group called indivisible; if you go to the website, you can put in your zip code, which is where I found the local organization Carroll CAN, and this was an offshoot of that” said, Hankins.
Westminster is a small town in northwestern Maryland nestled between Baltimore and Pennsylvania. Many of the folks in this city have lived here for generations, with a population of 18 648. Marty Hankins said, “It takes courage to be a Democrat in Carroll County; there’s even a bumper sticker that states it!” she said, laughing, “I have one on the back of my car.”
“There are more of us than people would like to think,” fellow CAN supporter Lida chimed in. “I think a lot of people run for election as Republicans because they know they can’t get elected otherwise. A lot of people, when they vote, just run down the list and look for that R. They don’t vote for anybody who’s a democrat. I switched to be a Republican to vote for certain people”. Lida said she only did so to get County Commissioner Robin Frazier out and has switched back to a registered Democrat since then. "That was worthwhile to do it!” she said, laughing.
“My neighbor is a great person. He’ll do anything for you, but he says the Democrats are going to take away the guns, and I don’t want to give away free peace to everybody, so that’s what they think democrats do”.
I asked the group If they have received any backlash from the community since so many are in support of the president. “Two summers ago, I was hit by a bottle rocket,” said Marty Hankins. “I’m not a hundred percent convinced it was targeted, but it was scary, and then another time there was a truck going up and down the street throwing firecrackers. Mostly though, it's just people driving by with thumbs down or yelling obscenities. Overwhelmingly, it’s been positive. People will wave or give a thumbs up and honk their horn, which gives us hope. Do you know the quote ‘nevertheless she persisted’? That’s what we’re doing; we’re persisting”.