FREEPORT, Maine — Nearly 150 people turned out Tuesday morning to support the Freeport flag ladies, who last week moved away from the spot where they’ve been holding American spirit rallies every Tuesday since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to avoid sharing the sidewalk with a woman holding signs supporting immigrants.
The self-proclaimed flag ladies, who have garnered attention across Maine and the United States, arrived at their spot on the corner of Main and School streets last week to find it occupied by Liza Moore, who held signs supporting immigration of Syrians into the United States. Moore’s late husband died in the 9/11 attacks.
The flag ladies — Elaine Greene, JoAnn Miller and Carmen Footer — relocated across the street. It was the first time in 14 years, including in pouring rain and blizzards, that the flag ladies did not stand in their customary location, where a granite bench is erected in their honor.
Greene said Tuesday morning that she was “humbled and honored” by the strong turnout.
“My heart is so filled right now,” she said.
Moore and her son, James Roux III, whose father died on a plane that terrorists crashed into the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, stood opposite the flag ladies earlier this month to offer a counterpoint to the trio’s message.
Roux, against whom the flag ladies have filed a temporary protection from harassment order, had been taken into police custody Sept. 11, 2015, after he disrupted a 9/11 observance led by the three women. He has described himself as “a pacifist and a patriot” and previously said he objected to the ceremony’s “program of military force” and its “exploitation of 9/11 victims, such as my father.”
Moore and Roux were not present Tuesday. In their place stood a group of Freeport High School students who said they support Moore’s cause. Moore, a part-time computer teacher at Mast Landing School in Freeport, could not be reached for comment.
Greene previously has said she and her cohorts support Moore’s right to free expression, but Roux’s combative posture during past encounters has made them fear for their safety in his presence.
Although Tuesday’s rally was of a peaceful nature, there were several people in the crowd who didn’t appreciate the presence of the immigration supporters.
“I’m 500 percent American. If they don’t like it, they should go home,” Joyce LaGasse of Durham said in reference to the Freeport High School students who gathered in support of Moore. “They’re not forced to be here. Leave our flag ladies alone.”
The high school students who held signs that read “Refugees Welcome” and “Acceptance” said they had taken criticism Tuesday from a few individuals and were told by members of the Patriot Riders motorcycle club to move off the corner, where they had assembled across the street from the flag ladies’ location. The group of students was much younger than the rest of the crowd and vastly outnumbered.
“We’re here to stand with Liza,” said Ella Russell, a Freeport High School senior from Durham. “We’re a minority right now. This is a corner of a street, and it doesn’t belong to someone.”
Russell said one of the flag ladies approached her Tuesday morning to thank her for being there and being respectful, but several others were not so polite.
“Some people have treated us almost like we’re little children,” Russell said. “Still, it’s not nearly as scary as some of the things refugees have been through.”
Maddie Squibb, another Freeport High senior, said she supports the flag ladies but said there should be room enough in Freeport for people exercising First Amendment rights to communicate more than one message.
“We should be able to stand here for what we believe in,” Squibb said.
Greene said she was proud of the students.
“I told them they had as much right to be here as we did and to stand tall in what they were doing,” Greene said. “I firmly believe that they took time out [to be at the rally] because they believe in something and that’s what we believe in: Get involved with what you believe in.”
Among the attendees at Tuesday’s rally was Ann LePage, the governor’s wife, who joins the flag ladies about once per month in Freeport. LePage said the silver lining in the controversy is that it brought 150 patriots to Freeport on Tuesday and heightened awareness about the work of the flag ladies.
“The Freeport flag ladies are the most patriotic people I know,” LePage said. “It’s sad to hear this be politicized. They’re just three women who are committed. They’re everything.”
Greene said she was sorry Roux “doesn’t seem to get it or who we are or what we do” but that Tuesday’s rally turned a controversy positive.
“Those young people down there with their signs? I’m proud of them,” she said.
The spirit of Tuesday’s rally was dampened at around 9 a.m. when a woman, Rhoda “Bunny” O’Leary of Norway, was struck by a vehicle as she crossed School Street. O’Leary, a frequent supporter of the flag ladies who also is involved with the Patriot Guard Riders and Wreaths Across America, was taken away by Freeport EMS. She was listed in fair condition late Tuesday afternoon at Maine Medical Center in Portland, according to a hospital representative.
BDN photojournalist Troy R. Bennett contributed to this report.
