We live in extraordinary times. There was no greater reminder of that than the horrific actions by a white supremacist aboard a
light rail train in Portland and the heroic response by three good Samaritans.
It all started when the accused whose name I will not repeat began verbally threatening and accosting two young women of color, including one who wore a hijab. Most fellows passengers merely watched. However, three men-Taliesen Namkai-Meche (left), Rick Best (center),and Micah Fletcher (right)-decided to intervene. A knife was brandished by the assailant, and Messrs Best and Namkai-Meche paid with their lives while Mr. Fletcher survived only after several hours of surgery.
What exactly went through the minds of these three men when they decided to intervene we will never know for sure. Mr. Best was a veteran, a father of three, and a former Republican candidate for office. His brand of patriotism was not limited to party, and I can only imagine the horror he felt when he saw the young woman under attack. Even out of uniform, he must have felt duty-bound to confront the enemy in front of him and intervene. How sad his family must be with his passing, but how proud they must feel, too.
Mr. Namkai-Meche was a recent graduate of Reed College who had a bright future ahead of him. He was universally loved, and his dying words were, "I want everybody on the train to know, I love them." His mother sent out an impassioned note of love to her son and later pleaded with the president (lower case p) to speak out. We will not hold our breath.
Finally, Mr. Michah Fletcher, a student from Portland State University and poet, also came to these young women's defense. He was the sole survivor of these three men. He summed up what he had all achieved in life and what his fellow Samaritans had achieved in death:
"I, am alive.
I spat in the eye of hate and lived
This is what we must do for one another
We must live for one another."
Heroes-all three-who remind us what is best in America and what we are all capable of-love, tolerance, and justice.
Neither I nor most who live in this city will forget them anytime soon, and I hope that the events of last weekend inspire the same reaction in us all when we are confronted by hate, bigotry, or intolerance.
May these heroes rest in peace.
