After last week’s presidential election, protests continue in several major American cities. The national rift is clear even in Sitka. This past weekend residents carrying semi-automatic weapons and a confederate flag marched in support of the Second Amendment, while just two blocks away others gathered to air their grievances at a candlelight vigil.
Marshall Albertson is waving as people drive by. His smile is wide across his bearded face.
“We’re just out here rallying for our First Amendment and Second Amendment rights,” explains Albertson. His belief in the right to bear arms is clear by the gun slung across his shoulder.
“Not an AR-15, but an R-15,” Albertson clarifies, “made by Remington. It’s a semi-automatic firearm.”
Marshall Albertson and Brittan Sheets, holding a Confederate flag that reads, ‘Heritage not hate” march for the right to bear arms. (Emily Russell/KCAW Photo)
And he’s got second gun, a 45 pistol, concealed beneath his coat.
“Which I carry everywhere,” Albertson says, “day or night, even if I’m going to the grocery store.”
Albertson and his wife helped organize the rally. He says he wanted to show the people of Sitka that public protests don’t need to end in violence, like what happened in Portland, Oregon, where one man was shot and over 70 were arrested.
He supported Donald Trump in this year’s election, which is clear from the bumper stickers on the back of his truck. They read, ‘Hillary for Prison,’ ‘Trump 2016,’ ‘Donald Trump for President,’ and Albertson adds, “I’ve also got my ISIS hunting permit– unlimited bag limit.”
Albertson is here to set the record straight. He says in small town Alaska, you to get along with your neighbors, which he says is difficult when generalizations are tossed around.
“They say we’re a bunch of racists, we’re a bunch of homophobes, xenophobes, sexists, and that’s not true,” says Albertson.
Brittan Sheets is standing next to Albertson, and nods in agreement. He says liberals are labeling them all wrong.
“I’ve had gay friends, lesbian friends, transsexual friends of every different race, every different color, every different ethnicity,” says Sheets.
Along with a rifle around his shoulder, Sheets has a confederate flag in his hand that reads “Heritage not hate” in big, bold letters. He holds it up high as cars drive by.
“The Confederate flag itself holds no more racial relevance than the American flag itself,” Sheets says. “That would be like people trying to disown our American flag because we revolted from England.”
The Second Amendment rally is about 10 people, half of them high school students. Two blocks away, a larger crowd has gathered.
Sitkans gathered at Crescent Harbor for a candlelight vigil after last week’s elections. (Emily Russell/KCAW Photo)
“Why are you marching down the street with weaponry?” Questions Skyler Wright. “That can’t be anything but threatening to me.”
Wright is a young woman of color. She, her mother, and about 30 other Sitkans stand in a circle under the Crescent Harbor shelter, holding candles to express sadness over the election and fear for the future.
For Tahirih Lang, the fear is very real.
“As a mother to Arab-Muslim children, who were born in this country, whose father is Syrian,” Lang explains, “it’s scary for me now.”
Tahirih Lang and Skyler Wright at Sitka’s candlelight vigil. (Emily Russell/KCAW Photo)
Lang doesn’t identify as a liberal. She’s anti-establishment and wants to see change, but says Trump’s change was too radical and his rhetoric too hateful. Seeing men marching the streets with a confederate flag elicits a lot of emotions.
“Without question, history is repeating itself,” Lang says.
As women of color Tahirih Lang and Skyler Wright are in the minority at the vigil. Ironically, it is an older white male who marks this moment with a Civil Rights anthem. The circle of people begin singing “We Shall Overcome.”
Sarah Brewer put together a handmade sign when she heard about the Second Amendment march. (Emily Russell/KCAW Photo)
And just like the Civil Rights movement, the work isn’t over. Despite their peaceful intentions, both events were disrupted briefly by angry, verbal confrontations with passersby. Perhaps unlike Portland, Sitka has its shades of gray. It’s a gun-owning town that supported Hillary in the election. One woman, marching alone, seems to represent this middle ground.
“I am holding a sign, hopefully of solidarity with the marchers,” explains Sarah Brewer. “I do support the Second Amendment, but that I am also calling for them to support tolerance as well.”
Tolerance that Sitka — and communities across the country — will be looking to as the nation transitions from a turbulent election to an already-troubled presidency.
Update, November 18, 2016: The event sponsor says more residents attended the Candlelight Vigil than the 30 reported by both local news outlets. In all, the sponsor says, 60-70 attended by the conclusion of the event.
