Woohoo!!! Although It’s hard to believe this will be our twelfth year being a Media Sponsor for The Music Hall Downtown Portsmouth. I’m grateful every year I get to sign the agreement and know I get to be involved with such a fantastic organization that goes back so far and has such a distinguished place in town.
Edit– At this time… I am not proud of the Music Hall but I’m not going to turn my back on them. I’m going to give them the chance to make things right and gain the trust back that has been lost. People can make mistakes, we have all made them. When you are the head of such a big name and establishment like the Music Hall you really need to consider your actions and words. I read the news at the same time as everyone else. My first response was. “Oh my Gosh, Is the Music Hall really censoring art and free Speech? Are they making a political stance? As the hours went on I could see that neighbors were against neigbors. The internet was ablaze with comments. I learned things about some people I wish I hadn’t. I’m not trying to turn a blind eye at all. I was ready to give my 2 cents. But I thought about my friends at the Music Hall. Who they were as people and deep down I knew that this had to be a mistake. Although they might have been coming from a place of safety for their staff that didn’t translate sincerely to the public. It’s a hard place to be.
I am so happy the Joan G Lovering Health Center could still find a venue to show their film. I am glad more people know about them and the film they were screening. “No One Asked You,” a documentary film about fighting abortion stigma and activating people in local communities. I haven’t sen it yet but I would like to. It’s message might be working for good or bad.
Tina has made a mistake. A big one indeed. Can we forgive her? Can we also see all the good she has done as well? Tina has turned the Music Hall into a 30 show a year to a 600 show a year venue. 12 million dollars a year come back into the city. The work place she has created there has been better for her employees. Maybe that’s why when she called off the event her main focus was if anything happened would the staff be ok. Durring the NHFF the Music Halls staff is already spread thin. She asked the City of Portsmouth to close off the street to make things more safe. In the climate of today with so many shootings and violence she was worried what could happen.
I want this to be a lesson for many. The city of Portsmouth, The Music Hall, Internet warriors. How can we make something bad and make it good?