Arsonist Burns Peace Activists' Home

The Progressive McCarthyism Watch

On October 28, about 150 people attended a rally on campus to support the family and free speech. "I Thought This Was America," one sign said, according to the Daily News-Record. And that evening, a forum was held entitled, "Is Silence the Price of Freedom?" One man wore a shirt with an American flag on it and the words: "This idea doesn't burn," the paper said.

On October 22, the Daily News-Record, which is a conservative paper, wrote a strong editorial entitled "Arson Assault." It said: "The arson at the home of an anti-war Harrisonburg couple was outrageous and must be condemned not only by those who believe in the First Amendment, but also by all those who believe in decency and humanity. The harassment of the Harrisonburg couple was appalling. . . . Violence and vandalism used to intimidate are not only criminal and cowardly, but profoundly un-American."

Hunter says she is not deterred by the arson. "We will put our signs out again," she vows.

Her 11-year-old daughter was more apprehensive. "We'll put the sign back up after they catch the guy who did it," she said, according to her father.

Hunter cites an act of solidarity that has comforted the family.

"A lot of people in the community have made their own signs to put in their own yards so it's not only us," she says. "On Saturday afternoon, we went to a gathering where people were making signs, and my kids helped make some, too."