Portland, Maine
The rally took place Sunday.
Mary Halsted, of the Maine People’s Alliance, said “we have to oppose white supremacy and make it clear that Maine is for all of us.”
The Maine Democratic Party is a co-sponsor of the event. Chairman Phil Bartlett said diversity is the country’s greatest strength, and “any words or actions that suggest otherwise are un-American.”
He said “we must — and will — stand up for equality and justice and speak out against hate and bigotry.”
About 500 people also marched against racism in Kittery on Saturday, following a deadly white-nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Va.
Concord
Officials hope to start the court diversion program for high-risk, non-violent offenders in early September.
Superior Court Chief Justice Tina Nadeau told the Concord Monitor that people in the criminal justice and treatment communities work together to identify repeat offenders who have been “recycled through the system three, four, or more times with tougher sanctions imposed each time, but no changes in their behavior.”
Participants stay in prison but are under supervision including drug testing, counseling, weekly court sessions and community service.
— Wire reports