Business Report Publisher Rolfe McCollister’s most recent column went to the printer on Thursday, just as the historic rains that flooded the Capital Region began to fall.
“Our community has experienced some tough and tragic times in the past six weeks. The shootings seemed to divide our community, and the historic flooding we are now experiencing seems to have quite the opposite effect. It is a tremendous test for us all,” McCollister writes in an updated version of his column. “The violence and death that played out in July was painful. And the threat to thousands of lives in August proved that we survive helping one another. How proud I felt to see the many selfless heroes in our community—black and white, young and old, male and female—who stepped forward to help both neighbor and stranger. We will all need that same attitude and patience for the long road of recovery ahead.”
But while we rebuild our community, McCollister says, we must realize that we can’t do everything the same way.
“We have the opportunity to look at things differently and build for the future. That applies to physical structure and design, as well as policies too,” he writes. “And while the flood has captured everyone’s attention and will impact us all in some way, what happened in July and its impact on our community is not to be diminished. Change must happen.”
McCollister says in light of the tragic events in July, now is the time to demonstrate leadership and show that we are going to take a hard look at why Alton Sterling was killed by two police officers.
“Though they reacted to the situation in split seconds, decisions that night by officers at the Triple S store impacted the lives of many families, our city and our country,” McCollister writes, noting that we still don’t know all of the circumstances of what exactly happened during the incident. “But they should at least result in changes in our community and reforms in the police department, regardless of any decision by the U.S. Justice Department.”
McCollister says we should each participate and ask questions and suggest ideas as we begin a new chapter in our history.
“The Rev. Raymond Jetson challenged us all when he asked, ‘Have we as a people become so silent about things that matter that those who choose to speak up are the exception rather than the rule?'” he writes.
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