City & State 7
The Brown Daily Herald Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Stabbing on Thayer Street brings violence close to home By JENNIFER KAPLAN Contributing Writier
Michael Danielewicz/Herald
Lincoln Chafee ’75 P’14 was sworn in as Rhode Island’s first independent governor on Jan. 4.
Chafee ’75 P’14 sworn in as governor By Michael danielewicz Contributing Writer
Newly inaugurated Governor Lincoln Chafee ’75 P’14 urged Rhode Islanders Jan. 4 to reclaim the state’s historic legacy of tolerance and independence in spite of challenging economic times. Chafee — a former Republican who is the first independent to be elected to the state’s top office — was sworn in as Rhode Island’s 58th governor. The heir to a Rhode Island political dynasty, Chafee took the oath of office on a Bible that belonged to his father, Republican John Chafee P’75, a former Rhode Island governor and U.S. senator. In keeping with his inauguration theme, “A Time to Come Together,” Chafee asked Rhode Islanders to unite behind Roger Williams’ vision of “a ‘civil state’ … a vibrant, diverse community that is free of political, cultural and ethnic division.” In his inaugural address, delivered on the State House steps, Chafee criticized the state’s political establishment for failing to address Rhode Island’s challenges. “The time of irresponsibility has ended,” Chafee said. Ted Widmer, the director of the John Carter Brown Library and a former speechwriter for President Bill Clinton, was the lead writer of Chafee’s speech. In his address, Chafee said he would rescind Jan. 5 an executive order by former Governor Donald Carcieri ’65 mandating the use of E-Verify, an online federal program allowing employers to check workers’ eligibility for legal employment. Chafee said the order causes “needless anxiety within our Latino community without demonstrating any progress on illegal immigration.” He also said he hoped Rhode Island would pass a bill legalizing gay marriage in the near future. “I think that Gov. Chafee has the opportunity to bring individuals together in ways that we haven’t done for some time in Rhode Island,” wrote Domingo Morel GS ’13, a po-
litical science Ph.D. candidate and co-founder of the Latino Policy Institute at Roger Williams University, in an e-mail to The Herald. Chafee’s election marks what he called in his inaugural speech a “second chance” for the former U.S. senator and mayor of Warwick, who lost his 2006 Senate re-election bid to Democrat Sheldon Whitehouse. Chafee broke from the G.O.P. in 2007 after joining the Watson Institute for International Studies as a distinguished visiting fellow. Chafee will assume the governorship in a state facing double-digit unemployment, a nearly $300 million budget deficit and controversy surrounding education reform, an issue that made national headlines after a mass firing last year at Central Falls High School. According to David Ricci, a teacher of government at La Salle Academy in Providence, the Central Falls issue is only one of many Chafee must tackle in his first months in office. “Nothing is going to happen without money,” Ricci said, adding that Chafee’s proposed 1 percent sales tax on currently tax-exempt items may be one of the ways to start raising the necessary revenue. Charles Picerno, a self-described “nomadic Rhode Islander,” was among a small group of protesters at the inauguration ceremony. Picerno said Chafee has an “elitist mentality” and added that taxation is the exact opposite of what should happen to ensure the state’s wellbeing. “I own the government, the government does not own me,” Picerno said, carrying a sign that called for Chafee’s recall. Other protestors car-
ried signs in favor of the E-Verify system. Peter Carney, a Warwick resident who attended the inauguration, had a more positive view of Chafee. He said the governor has “got some moral fiber” and that Chafee deserves credit for defecting from the Republican Party on issues like the Iraq War during his Senate career. Chafee’s transition team had promised that the inauguration festivities would be frugal and modest. The ceremony included a poem read by Rhode Island’s poet laureate, Lisa Starr, as well as a flyover by Blackhawk helicopters and C-130 transport aircraft and a 19-gun salute. Following the ceremony, Chafee greeted members of the public who had formed a long line around the second floor of the State House. Returning Lieutenant Governor Elizabeth Roberts and Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis as well as newly elected Attorney General Peter Kilmartin and General Treasurer Gina Raimondo were also sworn in at the State House Tuesday. The ceremony came on the heels of Providence Mayor Angel Taveras’ inauguration Monday as the city’s first Latino mayor. The inauguration’s events concluded with a special WaterFire in Waterplace Park and a packed public reception in Chafee’s honor at Ruth’s Chris Steak House in Providence. Chafee opted out of an inaugural ball in favor of a party open to the public. “It’s only anybody’s guess” what Chafee will do in office, said Marilyn Soscia, who attended the inauguration ceremony. In any case, “something has to change” in the state, she said.
A Warwick man was stabbed on Thayer Street outside Cafe Paragon following a verbal argument on the night of Jan. 16. Both the 31-year-old victim, Nicholas Johnston, and his attacker are unaffiliated with the University. Paragon Manager Theo Spiridis said Johnston went back inside the restaurant after the fight, and then “got up, paid his bill and drove himself to the hospital.” Johnston told no one about the fight when he returned and only realized he was injured after he sat down to continue his meal, Spiridis added. Violence on Thayer is an uncommon occurrence, according to Lt. John Ryan of the Providence Police Department. The stabbing was “probably our first felony assault up there for awhile,” Ryan said. He added that he does not think this incident indicates any increase in crime. Johnston did not know the attacker and is choosing not to press charges, according to the police report.
Students need not worry that they are in any increased danger, Margaret Klawunn, vice president for campus life and student services, said. “Certainly, we try to remind Brown students that you are living in the city of Providence, and, as you would in any city, we remind students to be cautious and use common sense,” Klawunn said. Klawunn said the Providence Police Department works in tandem with Brown’s Department of Public Safety around campus, but this incident was too far from central University buildings for DPS to get involved. Paragon’s business has not been affected by the stabbing, Spiridis said. “We had nothing to do with it. It’s not like we had a fight inside the restaurant between two guests,” he said. “I can’t tell people how to behave in public.” Students said the stabbing does not affect their perception of safety on campus. “It didn’t involve any Brown students, and it didn’t happen when Brown was in session,” said Max Hannan ’14.