Volume LXX, Number 46
www.towntopics.com
Community Leaders Speak To an Anxious Crowd At Post-Election Gathering
Schools Respond to PostElection Concerns . . . . 9 Election Subject of Council Statement. . . 10 Times Columnist David Brooks Speaking at Seminary. . . . . . . . . . 17 Scenes from Arts Council’s Dining by Design Gala. . . . . . . . 22 Post-Election Music: Going High and Low with Singer PJ Harvey. . . . 26 Princeton Football Rolls to Victory at Yale. . . . 32 PHS Boys’ Cross Country Wins 1st State Crown Since 1986. . . . . . . . 37
Sophia Tornetta Helps PU Field Hockey Make NCAA Semis . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Books . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Cinema . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Classified Ads. . . . . . . . 41 Mailbox. . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Music/Theater . . . . . . . 27 New to Us. . . . . . . . . . . 18 Obituaries . . . . . . . . . . 39 Real Estate . . . . . . . . . 41 Religion. . . . . . . . . . . . 40 Service Directory . . . . . 44 Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Topics of the Town . . . . . 5 Town Talk. . . . . . . . . . . . 6
At a post-election gathering last Thursday evening at Princeton Public Library, an overflow crowd of anxious residents voiced their fears about the future and heard pledges of support from local officials and the heads of non-profit and religious groups. Organized by the town’s Human Services Department, Mayor Liz Lempert and library director Brett Bonfield, the “Post-Election Conversation with Community Leaders” brought an overflow crowd to the library’s Community Room. The mood was somber. Some people wrote messages of support (“Keep Calm and Be Happy,” “I’m With You,” “Take the Time to Think About Others,” etc.) on sticky-notes and stuck them to a wall. Others attached safety pins, handed out by library staff, to their lapels. The pins have become a show of support, nationwide, to signify a willingness to stand up for the vulnerable. “This is not a political conversation or a rally,” Human Services director Elisa Neira said in her opening remarks. “It’s about how we can move forward …. This is a place to process, share, connect, and support.” Particularly distressed by the victory of Donald Trump, who has pledged to deport millions of immigrants, are the undocumented who live in Princeton, which is considered a sanctuary city. “Our neighbors are scared,” said Leticia Fraga, vice chair of Human Services and chair of the Latin American Legal Defense and Education Fund. “There are families whose children were crying and afraid to go to school. A third grader and fifth grader were told by classmates to start packing their bags. And just today, there were fewer people out on Witherspoon Street,” she added, referring to an area of town where many undocumented people reside. “They’re afraid.” Ms. Fraga was among those to offer support to residents. “We can assure the community we are here for them,” she said. “We will do all in our power to protect them.” Bill Schofield, interim executive director of HiTops, said that many LGBTQ teenagers who frequent the center are fearful. “They’re afraid that a lot of the gains accomplished over the last decade are gone overnight,” he said. “We have to think about how we’ll respond to this.” HiTops Continued on Page 4
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PCDO: Biggest Challenge to Protect People and Issues
The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat struck simultaneously for local Democrats last week. Eighty-three percent of Princeton votes went to Hillary Clinton, Liz Lempert won more than 70 percent of the ballots in the mayoral race, and two Democratic candidates were unopposed in their bid for town council seats. But the surprising Trump victory in the national election seemed to set the mood at Democratic Party Headquarters at 138 Nassau Street. Despite the extreme mixed emotions, the Democrats have not been stunned into inactivity. “I was surprised,” said Princeton Community Democratic Organization (PCDO) president Owen O’Donnell. “We’re going through something like the seven stages of grief. We’ve had our week of shock and despair, but now it’s time to organize and continue to fight for what we believe in.” Mr. O’Donnell discussed some of the difficulties the country might face in the next four years. “The biggest challenge ahead,” he noted, “is protecting people and issues that are going to be under fire under a Trump/ Republican agenda. And that reaches down from the national level to the local level. These are issues that affect people where they live, everywhere. We’re not going back to the time when bigotry and discrimination were accepted in this country.”
Emphasizing concerns about the environment, immigration, income inequality, and LGBTQ rights, Mr. O’Donnell stated, “We have to make sure that volunteers continue to turn out and put in the time and effort they put in on the presidential campaign.” He added, looking ahead to local mid-term elections, “2018 is also very important, and next year there are gubernatorial, state assembly, and state senate races.”
At their upcoming November meeting, Sunday at 7 p.m. at the Suzanne Patterson Center (behind Monument Hall), the PCDO will be featuring campaign strategist and Princeton native Tom Lindenfeld speaking on “Coming to Terms with the Twists and Turns of the 2016 Presidential Election.” Mr. Lindenfeld, president of LSG Strategies organizing and political telemarketing firm, has extensive Continued on Page 6
Council Members Challenge Eisgruber at Public Meeting A public dialogue between Princeton Council and Princeton University President Christopher L. Eisgruber turned testy November 9 when a member of Council confronted Mr. Eisgruber about his response to the way local police handled the arrest of University Professor Imani Perry early this year. Also prominent in the discussion at Monument Hall was the fate of Springdale Golf Course. It was last February that Ms. Perry was pulled over on Mercer Street for speeding, and arrested on a warrant for unpaid parking tickets. Controversy erupted after Ms. Perry criticized police on social media and Mr. Eisgruber published a letter
in The Daily Princetonian calling for an investigation into the patting down and handcuffing of Ms. Perry to a desk. An investigation into the incident, including a video, showed that the officer involved had followed proper police procedure. There was talk among some residents and officials that Mr. Eisgruber should have publicly recognized that conclusion. “I don’t think you acknowledged that — actually even after it happened — our police were following good procedures,” Councilwoman Jenny Crumiller said to Mr. Eisgruber. “When Professor Perry Continued on Page 8
ON VETERANS DAY: Mayor Liz Lempert addresses the crowd at the Spirit of Princeton’s Veterans Day ceremony Friday. Keynote speaker Roger Williams, secretary of the Princeton Battlefield Society, is among those discussing their reactions to the election in this week’s Town Talk. (Photo by Emily Reeves)
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