Written by Barbara Smith,
Blogger and Social Justice Activist
https://www.facebook.com/HWdemocrats/
The following screenshots are from November 2021, after I DARED to disagree with the leaders of the Hamilton Human Rights Commission (HHRC). I committed the crimes of
1) agreeing with the Hamilton Select Board members who wanted to include women and atheists as protective classes and
2) that I did NOT support Jamie Belsito for state representative –
Hence, I was banned from reading and posting on the Hamilton Wenham Human Rights Coalition (HWHRC) Facebook page. As with all cults…..Dissent is not allowed! Note that many of the same officials from the Hamilton Wenham Coalition and Hamilton and Wenham town tax-funded Human Rights Commissions are spokes persons for both organizations….. even though the town Commissions are taxpayer funded and the Coalition is a 501 (c) (4) political lobby.
The following exchange began when I expressed my support of the 2 independent minded Select Board members who wanted the HHRC policy to include “women” and “atheists” as worthy of protective status in policy. However, these two members also dared to not obey the cult….
It is important that we hold elected officials such as Anna (aka Voldemort, you know who….) accountable for their conflict of interest and behaviors indicative of an agenda that is not in the best interest of the residents of Hamilton and Wenham. Her interest is to control
- the School Board,
- every elected/appointed official in the community,
- the community and residents only facebook pages,
- educational materials taught in our schools,
- all development, especially affordable housing regardless of environmental, fiscal, traffic, density consequences
- push an agenda that bans on-line dissent and bullies all in her path to power.
She also earns income from selling affordable housing units.
The 2 Select Board members moved to adopt a simple human rights statement that did not detail the long list of protected classes in order to avoid discriminating against women , atheists and any other group not listed. Instead, the Commission policy that the faith-based political lobby insists on excludes atheists and women, INCLUDES ex-convicts and continues to demonize residents such as myself who find this exclusion offensive. One must wonder why the Commission and Coalition so strongly refuse to include women and atheists as protected classes……
Anna calls anyone who disobeys her- this weird acronym….
TERF– an acronym for trans-exclusionary radical feminist.
Anna continues writing to me on the HWHRC fb page before I got banned….
The policy can easily include “women” and “atheists” regardless of what the town attorney has to say. This is a CHOICE, a political and faith based CHOICE. Perhaps the attorney was afraid to go against the Anna Cult bully, as many other town officials are. All residents and town officials risk being called a “racist” “bigot”, “TERF” , “classist” or worse when you don’t obey the leader.
I have the right to call myself whatever I want…. even a “woman” and that does not make me a TERF, nor transphobic. I am an ally to social justice causes including human rights for all….. Anna V. and her followers do not define my gender, identity, nor what is in my heart as she demonizes all who disobey her!
Women are not just a gender. Women are a class that is highly discriminated against in employment, and at risk of forced birth. Men and women are NOT like broccoli and carrots because one of those has all the power and the other category needs protection. Women (both with female anatomy and Trans women with male or other anatomy) both face discrimination and deserve class protections. If a human rights organization is created to protect our rights, then why not go ahead and include the most vulnerable classifications in existence- WOMEN and TRANS women? I believe the answer lies in appeasing the faith-based Coalition and Commission members largely involved with the local Christian Colleges (Gordon University and Gordon Conwell Seminary)
The Commission Chair, Anne Brady is very focused on the modern day LGBTQ+ lingo. Contrary to her demands, two Select Board members were very focused on protecting WOMEN regardless of anatomy because as we all know there is a war against women and bodily autonomy in the United States. I don’t care who is “binary” or “non-binary” and that does not make me a “racist”, “bigot”, “classist” or “TERF”!!!
The values of those of us who want to protect the human rights of women and atheists do not make us “racists”, “bigots” or “TERFS” and “classists”. It is not a crime or even rude to disagree with any human rights Coalition or Commission (the is America, the land of free speech, right?) . In addition, I do not need to define what I am. I already know that I am a woman and I respect BOTH Trans women with anatomical differences and anatomically female women. We need and deserve protective class status. The Hamilton and Wenham Coalition and Commission leaders have repeatedly refused. Self righteous, cult members always believe that they are right and everyone else is wrong. THIS IS CULT MENTALITY AND BEHAVIOR..……
Atheism is not a religion and to say so is ignorant….
Atheism is not a religion and I ought to know because I am a proud, loud and consistent voice for reason. I have experienced a life time of discrimination and hate as a member of the non-religious minority. Refusal to include atheists as protective status clearly stems from the faith-based members of the Select Board, Coalition, Commissions and their religious followers on the town Boards. There is no need for definitions, we simply need to include my classes- I am a woman (I decide what to call myself! ) and I am an atheist. Why deny me my rights by using linguistic gymnastics and offering to revisit a “living ” document. Give me my rights NOW and don’t call me a “racist”, “classist” ,”bigot” or “TERF” for demanding my rights.
Anna Voldemort is not in charge of human rights lingo nor who deserves human rights protection…..
Ms. Voldemort got her wish, she loves attention, control and pushing her self-righteous faith based agenda. She created hate and division in Hamilton and Wenham. People are NOT racists and bigots if they request a “gentler” “less aggressive” and easier to understand language in human rights policy. This is common sense even though it is not what certain controlling personalities asked for. But since believe they are always right and everyone who disagrees is the enemy…..the divisions have been created, the hate is growing.
Good leadership involves listening to ALL the people in Hamilton and Wenham not only those who follow and/or pledge to a 501 (c) (4), political lobby with a faith-based agenda. My human rights have been trampled, as are all of us who stand in the path of Ms. Voldemort’s agenda. That agenda includes controlling every elected and appointed town official, banning voices of dissent and selling housing units for her employer regardless of environmental, fiscal, density, traffic and other considerations…. and anyone opposed is a “racist” , a “classist” and a “bigot”. Ms. Voldemort’s employer Harborlight is also a faith based non-profit.
Yes, Hamilton and Wenham are dominated by Christians and atheists need protections…
According to KA, chair of the Wenham Democratic Committee and leader in the Coalition and Commission….
written on the HWHRC facebook page by KA, chair of Wenham Democratic Town Committee and leader of the coalition political lobby
KA’s logic for excluding women as a protected class is ridiculous-basing it on a single situation where a MAN might have been discriminated against if only women were protected. Hamilton and Wenham human rights policy is very different than the legal technicalities that may arise during a Supreme Court case. Her point is just an example of digging for a reason to not protect “women” as a protected class because the Trans community might find offense with the terminology involved in discussing “women.” She is also against giving atheists respect and protected class status. The reason why is obvious…… EVANGELICALS can’t even conceive of the concept that atheists need and deserve human rights protections…..
Democratic Town Committee Chair people
I met KA over the summer of 2020. These were heady times as the pandemic roared, protests held all over the world denounced the killing of George Floyd, the North Shore NAACP was created and the HWHRC was being formed. I was thrilled to be involved in all of this social justice work. I reorganized and became chair of the Hamilton Democratic Town Committee (DTC) in the fall. Wenham followed one month later, electing KA as chair of the Wenham Democratic Town Committee (DTC) . We worked together to get Biden/Harris signs all over the towns, get out the vote postcards written and more….
Social Justice Bona Fides….
So, Its good to know that KA comes from a family that cherishes religious freedom, although all the details seem unnecessarily self-indulgent and irrelevant to the fact that she wants to deny protective class status to women and atheists. Actually, I have my own social justice bona fides to brag about…. I come from a family that lived through watching fellow Jews be slaughtered in WWII. My parents raised me to be Jewish, however, it didn’t make any sense to me…that I was of the chosen people, since 6 million of us had recently been murdered in the Holocaust…. hence, I became an atheist at a very young age… I deserve and demand respect and human rights protection for atheists even though the political Hamilton and Wenham political lobby coalition and their followers refuse…..
Stop the Witch Hunts!
As an atheist, it is critical that people of all faiths and no faith be protected. During WWII, Joe McCarthy came into power, condemning what he considered evil “commies” and “atheists” . A witch hunt ensued and many people were arrested and lost their jobs due to his bullying and name calling. Now, let’s substitute the words “commie” with the word “racist”. Anyone who dissents with the Coalition, gets called a racist….. sound familiar??? Or substitute “witch” for women” and we see another dangerous allegory…
How can a so-called human rights organization have so much hate? KA claims in the screen shot that she wants to protect ALL human rights, but what about me, a woman and an atheist? (I have the right to call myself a ‘woman’). I resigned as Chair of the Hamilton Democratic Town Committee (DTC) because I refused to support Democratic candidate for state representative Jamie Belsito. She signed a pledge of loyalty to the Coalition, not to the voters in her district. Ms. Belsito allied with Ms. Voldemort to push a housing development platform that financially benefits Ms. Voldemort at the expense of the environment and the residents. The Coalition endorsement and political lobby money helped Belsito to win while the Coalition leader, self-righteous, control freak, zealot…..Anna V. was busy calling her political opponent a racist, “classist” and a “bigot”.
This is not how Democracy should work!
Relevant Blog posts:
Read about the HWHRC control of the Hamilton Board of Select as the members claim that they have a mandate to set morality standards and guide resident’s moral values:
Read about the inherent risks involved in pushing for non-governmental flags in public schools and governmental settings:
Read about cults and mind control:
Read about Anna Voldemort’s goals to turn “racist” and “classist” Hamilton into the next Newburyport:
Read about the power of the 501 (c) (4) use of dark money:
Read about how Anna Voldemort influences town manager to remove covid test kits from town hall to give to faith-based, organizations to distribute behind the backs of the Select Board Members. Test kits designated for Hamilton residents ended up in Essex, Topsfield and Wenham. Young Gordon Conwell students had the test kits meant for at higher risk senior citizens such as myself.