I am a white woman with a French surname. Six years ago, my husband and I knocked on doors and met our prospective neighbors. We found a community of good, welcoming people in our new neighbors and others in local businesses, and decided to make Lewiston our home.

The recent controversy regarding our mayor’s infamous letter to Somali immigrants and the planned hate group rally on Jan. 11 has me wondering. Was I accepted into this community, by some people, simply because I look like them and have the right name? Would I have been welcomed with less warmth if I were black, Jewish, gay or different in some other way? Am I the reluctant beneficiary of a cultural or racial advantage over others “from away” that want to live, work and make a life here? I don’t know, but I do know we are blessed here in our safe corner of the world, and it is human nature to want to be and stay safe.

I have had the pleasure of meeting some of the good people who have come to this community in the last few years from places far from safe. I extend to them the welcome I received six years ago and hope they also enjoy the safety and blessings of this fine community. I will light a candle Friday evening and will be at the Many and One rally on Saturday to support a peaceful, harmonious and delightfully diverse future for Lewiston, Auburn and the world.

Catherine LeBlanc

Lewiston