Nashua has taken a dark turn, and the enemies of free speech and diversity of thought, with the help of Nashua Mayor Donchess, are doing a victory dance on our Constitution.

The Flag

On Saturday, October 10, 2020, defenders of women’s rights, raised a flag at City Hall stating a simple Message: “Save Women’s Sports” along with the phrase “Woman = Adult Human Female”. The flag was raised on the Citizen Flagpole, a public forum that is open to Nashua citizens to display flags with a variety of views and in the past, it has flown the Gay Pride Flag and the Gadsden Flag. The Save Women’s Sports flag was to fly until the following Friday, Oct. 16.

An application to raise this flag had been made to the City of Nashua and was approved. The flag message was conveyed during that request process. There was no bait and switch, and the permitted flag that contained a simple, powerful message in support of correcting a wrong, was raised.

—

The Suppression

After an uproar from the forever-enraged Progressive cancel-culture community, the flag was taken down on Sunday morning Oct. 11, 2020 by two city workers.

A Facebook post was made on 10/11/20 on the Nashua Civic Sounding Board group-page by Brenna Connolly, President of the Greater Nashua Young Democrats, thanking Nashua public officials Mayor Jim Donchess and Alderman Jan Schmidt for their role in what is clearly an attack on the 1st Amendment.

Mayor Donchess, confirmed his involvement in the attack on the 1st amendment by his statements that are included in a Manchester Union Leader article, Flak over a flag in the Gate City. As part of his justification for his free-speech suppression, the Mayor is quoted as saying:

“Nashua is a welcoming community, in which we embrace all people and the contributions of all are celebrated and valued.”

One wonders if the Mayor understands the irony of that statement given that he devalued and rejected the contributions of those seeking to protect women’s rights, simply because they do not agree with his worldview and agenda.

It is Cancel Culture on ugly display, and as Americans, our condemnation of this type of free speech suppression should be universal.

—

Free Speech, An American Core Value

There are good, reasonable people who believe that a woman is an adult human female and who also believe that those advocating that men compete as women in sports are putting the safety of our mothers, wives, sisters, and daughters at risk. And those people must be allowed to voice their opinion, even in Nashua.

No one has the right to silence speech that does not call for violence or hatred for any group. There is no “hate” in that flag’s message, it makes a statement of fact and a plea for change to protect the innocent. We have a right to say that truth however uncomfortable some are with truth being spoken, even in Nashua.

One of the core values on which this country is founded is attributed to Patrick Henry: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” I still believe that incredibly powerful and quintessential American sentiment regarding the individual’s right to speak freely, do you?

Mayor Donchess, your personal beliefs, whatever they are, should not matter here. Freedom of speech must be sacrosanct, or we are lost as a country.

And of course, actions speak louder than words.

Mayor Donchess, I challenge you to go to City Hall and personally raise that flag back up! Feel free to say while doing so: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.”

It’s the American thing to do.

Kevin Scully is a Nashua resident. He is a former member of the N.H. House of Representative, and a current state representative candidate in Ward 6, Nashua.