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Massena legislator says she 'wasn't trying to offend anybody' with controversial anti-Muslim post

Posted 4/26/19

BY ANDY GARDNER North Country This Week MASSENA -- A county legislator is facing harsh criticism over an anti-Muslim post she shared on social media, and top members of her party say the Democrat …

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Massena legislator says she 'wasn't trying to offend anybody' with controversial anti-Muslim post

Posted

BY ANDY GARDNER
North Country This Week

MASSENA -- A county legislator is facing harsh criticism over an anti-Muslim post she shared on social media, and top members of her party say the Democrat response went too far.[img_assist|nid=257262|title=Curran|desc=|link=none|align=right|width=150|height=233]

On Thursday morning, Rita Curran, a Republican representing the 15th District, Massena, shared an image from a page called Empire State Conservatives. It shows an airplane flying into the burning World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001. It is accompanied by the text “Every time a Muslim stand [sic] up in Congress and tells us they are going to change the Constitution, impeach our president, or vote for socialism, remember you swore you would never forget. They swore they would destroy us from within.”

Curran deleted the post from her page on Friday afternoon.

“Ms. Curran owes an apology to all those Americans of the Muslim faith who live in fear everyday thanks to hate filled posts like this one,” said the St. Lawrence County Democratic Party leadership in a letter to the editor. “Ms. Curran has demonstrated that she does not have the ethical or intellectual fortitude to act reasonably as a representative. Ms. Curran should resign her post immediately, and if she does not remove herself, the St. Lawrence County Legislature should act swiftly to remove her from office. The absence of action by the County Legislature is validation of Ms. Curran’s hatred and is an indictment of every board member who failed to put an end to it,” according to the letter, signed by Democratic chairman Mark Bellardini, first vice chair Mike Zagrobelny and second vice chair Nance Arquett.

Reached by phone on Friday afternoon, Curran said she “wasn’t trying to offend anybody” and didn’t see the post as being anti-Muslim at the time she shared it.

“I took it as a pro-American, simply just we still have to be cautious and ever-mindful people were out to get us,” she said. “I didn’t see the sentiment being anti-anyone … that is not a post I personally made. It is a post that I shared that someone else made.”

When asked why she didn’t perceive the post as anti-Muslim when the religion in targeted in the opening words, she responded “I’m not going to debate it with you.”

“I read a lot of this stuff. I don’t ... there’s no way for me to explain to you what I was thinking in that moment. Could I have read the post more carefully? Yes,” Curran said.

She said she does not believe all Muslims are violent radicals.

“I have friends that are Muslim,” the legislator said. “I’m not the least bit prejudiced against anyone.”

St. Lawrence County legislature chairman Joe Lightfoot, R-Ogdensburg, said he believes Curran should stay on the board.

“My personal feeling is she should not resign. That we should not remove her from office, that we don’t have any grounds to, that it is not my decision alone to make. The full board will speak to it on Monday evening. We will hear from Legislator Curran. We will go from there,” he said.

Lightfoot believes the Democrat response is inappropriate. He also said although he does not use social media, he would not have shared the image but wouldn’t say if he agrees with its message.

“I think that these folks crossed the line today,” Lightfoot said of the St. Lawrence County Dems. “I think they are the ones that have taken this and made it nothing more than a cheap political trick.”

“I would say that if it were me, that I wouldn’t have posted it,” the county board chairman said. “She’s got the right to post what she wants to post, and so do I, whether I agree with it or not, I’m not going there … My personal opinion is I wouldn’t have posted it.”

When pressed for his opinion on the post’s sentiment, Lightfoot said “You’re not going to make this about me … I’m not going to do that. It’s something I probably would not have not have done.”

Tom Jennison, St. Lawrence County Republican Party chairman, said he is “offended” by the Democratic response.

“The histrionics are obvious. They’re just calling for attention and I think the folks of St. Lawrence County if they knew Rita, the case here she is a very well-spoken and together person working as a nurse practitioner ... She certainly has no cause for the Democrats to say she doesn’t have ‘the ethical or intellectual fortitude’ … that’s preposterous,” Jennison said. “According to her, and I believe her, she did not mean to offend anyone. It’s been done and said. I agree indeed. The issue, to me, has to do with the letter from the Democratic committee and the points they were trying to bring forth.”

The GOP chairman said he doesn’t agree with the image’s message.

“I don’t agree with it at all, as far as that’s concerned,” Jennison said.