The anti-hate and bias task force in Franklin, which was formed after the city adopted a formal hate and intolerance resolution, will take on a new form. Now known as the Anti-Hate Group of Franklin NH, the group will focus on providing a support group and resources for victims of intolerance and concerned residents. 

After a local restaurant, the Broken Spoon, was the target of online attacks from a neo-Nazi hate group, NSC-131, the city adopted the resolution condemning hate and intolerance in September. Alongside the resolution, Franklin City Council also recommended establishing a citizen’s task force to address the problem from the point of view of residents, business owners and city officials.

The task force initially consisted of seven voting members. But in recent months, three members have resigned – leaving the others to talk at length about what the best purpose of this group would be, said Liz Cote, an inaugural member of the task force. 

 “We were talking about kind of our expertise, our backgrounds, and we were saying, we love Franklin, we love all of our citizens, and we want it to be welcoming,” said Cote. “But we're not a body of the law, we're not a body of the city. So we're not going to be taking legal action. What we can do is provide support and show love for our fellow citizens.”

The group plans to meet monthly now, with these meetings devoted to education sessions, open discussion and offering a space for community members to share resources. 

They’ve also decided to separate themselves from the city and work independently. To do so, they’ve created a new email FranklinAntiHateNH@gmail.com. 

“This gives us back the power of, you as a person can talk to your neighbors, you can educate yourself, you can read the laws, you can just chat with people and you can promote love and welcoming individually as yourself and there's a group where you can kind of gain that power to do so,” said Cote. 

Following the attacks on the Broken Spoon, several graffiti displays have overtly supported white supremacy – with swastikas and language promoting white power found at the Old Armory Building and behind the car wash and at Mill City Park. 

With ongoing discussions in Franklin about condemning these actions, the group hopes to be a space for this community discourse, alongside educational sessions. 

Initial topics for these sessions include how to de-escalate conflict, how to be an ally, and looking at federal and state definitions of hate crimes.

For Cote, who moved to Franklin in 2020, the initial decision to define the group as a “task force” limited the scope of their work, and created a more rigid, goal-oriented structure, as opposed to community conversation. 

“Task force kind of has the connotation of completing a task, and fighting, working toward one goal, she said. “Now it gives us the space to not be burdened with tasks that we aren't going to be able to fulfill, but really just support our mission of supporting the City of Franklin.” 

The mission remains the same from the groups founding – to promote inclusivity and acceptance, educate about intolerance and provide resources to victims of hate. 

The Anti-Hate Group of Franklin NH will host its first monthly forum on April 19 at 6 p.m, at the Unitarian Universalist Church. 

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