Closer to Home
It's easy to say it's a “city problem.”
It's Pittsburgh's problem, Cleveland's problem, Atlanta's problem.
It's not in Butler.
For many, the racial conflict ends with the power button on a TV remote or the off switch on a laptop.
But with an online threat to riot and a sizable crowd gathered in downtown Butler, last weekend it was Butler's problem.
Pastor William “B.T.” Gilligan of Nixon United Methodist Church in Penn Township watched intently a Facebook livestream of the Black Lives Matter and George Floyd protest in downtown Butler unfold.
Men and women stood casually with semi-automatic weapons and shotguns on street corners with the intention of protecting local businesses “if needed” following riots and looting the previous night in downtown Pittsburgh.
Protesters — mostly younger — carried signs, some vocalizing their grievances. The police stood between them. Some verbal sparring aside, it remained mostly peaceful.
Observers commended the police's handling of the situation.For some in the faith community, it was no less impactful than the images coming from cities across the country. And it raised some larger underlying issues that some community leaders want to address.“I'm still sad that this is what it takes, that Butler is a place where protesting is necessary,” Gilligan said. “It feels like Minneapolis is so far away. And yet it's come all the way to Butler.”Originally from Wellsboro, Pa., Gilligan is no stranger to guns in the back of pickups or even on the street, but it still concerns him, regardless of intentions.Watching a white man with a semi-automatic weapon engage in a calm conversation about discrimination, racial injustice and a need for change with a biracial man and a black man, however, gave Gilligan hope.“That to me speaks that it's not about ideologies or political views; it's about what's right and wrong,” he said.Nationwide protests this week sparked by the homicide of Floyd, who died May 25 in Minneapolis as a police officer knelt on his neck, spread across the country with a number of initially peaceful protests ending in violence — including conflicts in downtown Pittsburgh.As many as 300 to 400 people took part in Butler's May 31 protest on South Main Street near the Butler County Courthouse. Smaller local protests were held throughout the week.
Some people hope to use the protests as a means to rekindle a conversation about racial equity and action.It's a topic some in Butler's faith community want to act on.The question is: How?For Congregation B'nai Abraham's Cantor Michal Gray-Schaffer, the answer is through education. It means going and seeking someone who is different and asking.“It's hard to understand when you've never known someone in that demographic,” she said. “We need to educate ourselves and our congregations about racial inequality. Open your hearts to all kinds of people who have different situations.”She did that Monday by joining a march of regional faith leaders in Pittsburgh's Hill District.“It was fantastic. It was just people pouring out their experiences,” she said, recounting one woman's story.The woman spoke about how her grandson, a 6-foot-5-inch, 300-pound black man, is afraid to go outside because he gets profiled.“We all need to hear the experiences of people other than ourselves,” Gray-Schaffer said.For the Rev. Leigh Benish, pastor at Hill United Presbyterian Church, the past week's events have been yet another challenge in a year of challenges.“I've been saying for the last couple months that I'm in triage mode,” she said. “When I sit down and think of everything that's going on, it gets overwhelming very quickly.”
But she said the conversation about race is one that needs to continue.“Even though it's a challenging topic, it's one that needs to be addressed,” she said.The question of how remains, especially in a county such as Butler County that is 95.9 percent white, according to U.S. Census Data.“I don't have a clear answer at this stage of the game,” said Pastor Dave Trepanier of Gospel Life Church in Evans City. “I want to make sure that whatever we move forward with, it will have a long-term impact.”For Trepanier, it's about narrowing focus on a particular issue at a time.“My wife likes to say: People always want to change the world, but nobody is willing to do the dishes,” he said. “For me, it's how can I impact the community?”Earlier this year, his congregants made and distributed free face masks to help with the COVID-19 pandemic.For her part, Benish had to deal with the pandemic first-hand after one of her parishioners died from the virus.She also said it's about narrowing focus in terms of “what do you triage first?”But when Gilligan describes Butler as more liberal than where he came from, and Benish says it's more conservative than places she's lived, it speaks to the complexity of the political climate.
“My congregation is ... I would say purple,” Benish said, describing her church as a cross section of Butler County. “I have people (who) were out protesting and I have people (who) think it's all overblown.”Earlier this week, members of the Butler Clergy Network — in which Gilligan, Gray-Schaffer and Benish are involved — spent a significant portion of their monthly meeting addressing what the faith community can do to address some of those larger issues.“I think there is some misunderstanding of what's happening,” Benish said. “Butler is not a very diverse place. As a community, we don't see the issues that are being protested.”While no concrete plan for marches or events was developed, they discussed ideas for community engagement.“We're really trying to move on this. Although it will go slowly,” Gray-Schaffer said, “we're not going to drop it.”The group, composed of area religious leaders from a number of congregations in the county, will revisit the conversation at its next meeting. Members were encouraged to continue to educate themselves on the issues and bring more ideas to the table.“Just like every other place in America, we still have work to do,” Gilligan said. “We're not done yet. We just aren't.”
