Democrats Raise Funds To Help Re-Open Firebombed Republican Headquarters
HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. — What started as a suspected political act of terror in North Carolina soon helped bring party lines together on Sunday night, after a GOP building was firebombed. Democrats rallied behind Republicans raising funds for the office that was attacked.
The GOP office was vandalized late Saturday night, Oct. 16, as a bottle of flammable liquid was thrown through one of the windows, along with the words “Nazi Republicans leave town or else.” A swastika was also spray painted on a building adjacent to the office. No one was injured.
“The office itself is a total loss,” state GOP Executive Director Dallas Woodhouse said. “The only thing important to us is that nobody was killed, and they very well could have been.”
Democrats launched a GoFundMe campaign that raised over $13,000 in just 10 hours. The campaign reached their goal of $10,000 before it closed the fund, no longer accepting donations.
The campaign was created by David Weinberger, a research fellow at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard Law School. The GoFundMe page had this message:
“On Oct. 16, a North Carolina headquarters of the Republican Party was firebombed, and an abhorrent threat was painted on its outside wall. As Democrats, we are starting this campaign to enable the Orange County, North Carolina Republican office to re-open as soon as possible. Until an investigation is undertaken, we cannot know who did this or why. No matter the result, this is not how Americans resolve their differences. We talk, we argue, sometimes we march, and most of all we vote. We do not resort to violence by individuals or by mobs. So, let’s all pitch in, no matter what your party affiliation, in and get that office open again quickly.”
Over 500 people contributed to the campaign with some leaving comments with their donation.
One donator said, “Not a republican, but we all stand together against such anti-democratic violence”, while another added, “This is not an official effort of the Democratic Party. It is the effort of a half dozen Democrats (of which I am one). This is a moment for graciousness, not fractiousness.”
The violent act in the key battleground state was condemned by public figures across the political spectrum.
Source: Fox News