Letter to the Editor: Working on Unity

Friends,

In the wake of this divisive election, all of us in Door County face a great test of our stated principles. We on the left have long claimed our politics to be that of compassion for the other. And many of you on the right have claimed that your votes for Trump were not motivated by the racism that he so recklessly invokes. If those claims are true, then it’s time for us – members of a community whose very lifeblood is hospitality – to be tireless in our pursuit of respect, kindness and community. We are clergy, business owners, farmers, tradespeople, physicians, artists – what can each of us do to make sure everyone in this community, and our thousands of visitors, feel safe at a time when fear and bigotry have seized the nation? Clinton voters, Trump voters, gay people, brown people, disabled people, women: we must go out of our way to welcome them all. None of us can bring unity to our country as a whole, but we are nothing less than duty-bound to work for it on our little peninsula. Our economy depends on it, but more importantly, our community depends on it.

I am grateful to call this county home and hope that I can continue to feel proud of its bright and welcoming spirit.

Katie Dahl

Baileys Harbor, Wis.