By Dan Murphy
An audacious theft of a Black Lives Matter sign, placed directly under the Welcome to Greenburgh sign has the attention of the PD, Westchester DA and the State Senate Majority Leader.
The incident occurred on May 13, and the sign was only up for several hours before it disappeared. Greenburgh Police Chief Chris McNerney said that the investigation into who did this continues and that the Greenburgh PD is working with the Westchester District Attorney’s office on the case. “The Town of Greenburgh and this department strongly condemns all acts of hate and bias. We have a history of promoting diversity, unity, and inclusion. We are working with the Westchester County DA to identify the individual(s) responsible for this incident and bringing them to justice,” said McNerney.
Residents in Greenburgh were upset and in disbelief that the sign was removed. “I advocated for A BLM MURAL. The Town of Greenburgh made it a 3-part project. Mural – Sign and banners. On every Welcome to Greenburgh Sign. The sign was put up Wednesday morning on Knollwood Rd and by Thursday morning a hate crime and vandalism happen. They took the whole sign down from the ground with chains. Paul Feiner. Greenburgh Supervisor have received emails that they don’t want signs like this in the town of Greenburgh. I am on a BLM committee who meet monthly, and we are not going to allow hate to discourage us. Greenburgh, we need a real talk about CRITICAL RACE THEORY,” posted Clifton Earl Abrams.
Greenburgh Supervisor Paul Feiner told this reporter that, “The police chief spoke at our Town Board work session and indicated that the police are working with the DAs office, to try and subpoena video cameras from local businesses. He hopes that they will be able to locate the person and make an arrest. We are all offended by what happened -Greenburgh is a diverse and welcoming community. I don’t believe that this incident reflects what Greenburgh is all about,” said Feiner.
State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, who represents Greenburgh in the 35th District, said, “The reality is racism still exists. This incident though does not reflect our community. I have gone to Black Lives Matter rallies in my district and seen people I never thought – embrace this rallying cry. I saw residents of different races and backgrounds come together and say Black Lives Matter, and that gives me hope. I will continue to address police and criminal justice reforms and denounce such intolerant acts.”
