In mid-January, Unitarian Universalist Church in Cherry Hill erected signs stating “Black Lives Matter” near the front of its property on North Kings Highway. The church’s goal in erecting the signs was to forge conversation about disparities existing in various parts of society.
Just a few weeks later, problems began to arise. The church had one of its two banners stolen from the property in early February. A replacement banner was erected in the days following, but the story wasn’t over.
About two weeks later, on the morning of Feb. 21, officials arrived at the church and found its banners were gone again. This time, they were ripped down viciously, with damage done to the wood supports and lights.
“It felt like a violation,” said Jo Green, minister in residence at Unitarian Universalist Church. “When I drove in on Sunday morning to see the damage, it was a shock to see it.”
Green described the first incident in February as a peaceful theft, saying the ropes were neatly cut and there was no residual damage. The second theft was different.
“Both signs were stripped and pulled off,” Green said. “Nothing was cut. It was done by force.”
The vandalized signs were only part of the negative feedback UUCCH received. The church has spent the past couple weeks receiving social media comments, emails and a few phone calls from people voicing their displeasure about the church’s stance. Some of the comments were made directly on the church’s Facebook page.
“Great news,” a page titled Law and Order American Justice commented, “that abomination has no place near God’s House.”
“It’s very disconcerting,” Green said about the comments. “We’re being cautious. The comments I read on a particular page seemed to indicate we hate the police because we have a Black Lives Matter sign up. That is not true.”
Another critique Green has heard is all lives matter. One Facebook user from Marlton posted a comment alluding to this.
“Great news, all lives matter,” he posted. “Glad they are gone.”
Green said the inequality between people in certain parts of society shows all lives do not matter in the eyes of some people.
“When people say all lives matter, my response is obviously they don’t, because people aren’t being treated equally,” Green said.
“A lot of people don’t want to talk about it,” she added. “That’s the chunk of the problem.”
On the face of criticism, UUCCH’s response has been peaceful. The church had been planning a Black Lives Matter forum since late 2015. The forum, scheduled to take place tonight, was formed to bring government officials, church leaders and advocacy leaders together to discuss disparities in the criminal justice system, law enforcement practices, housing and employment policies. Church officials responded to critics with invitations to the event.
Even though the church had suffered through stolen signs and criticisms of its stance, Green said there has been no one who has actually come to church officials or members to argue against Black Lives Matters.
In addition, the church has gotten lots of positive feedback from members and local residents.
“We’ve gotten quite a few supportive emails and comments,” Green said. “There were comments on our website that I can remember. On our public website for the church, we have some very encouraging comments.”
There have been no arrests made in regard to the vandalism reports. Cherry Hill Police Chief William Monaghan said the police are investigating the incidents strictly for vandalism and nothing more.
“There’s nothing to believe there’s any racial bias and undertones,” Monaghan said. “We don’t have any other information to lead us to believe otherwise.”
Green is hopeful last week’s vandalism and the ensuing spotlight put on the church serves as a way for the South Jersey community to begin talking about societal issues. She also encourages those who don’t agree with the church’s stance on issues to actually speak to church officials and discuss the topics in a peaceful manner instead of committing vandalism or posting hateful comments online.
“If this is bothering you so much, come and talk to us about,” Green said. “We want a dialogue.”
