Thursday night I went to the circus, taking several grandchildren to celebrate a birthday. I enjoyed the circus greatly but I am gravely disappointed in how the city of Everett handled the protesters. The protesters were very rude and off base with their claims. There are federal and state laws that protect the animals

Secondly, there were very few animals involved in the program and it was evident they were all treated with great love and attention. But the city of Everett and the police were not very attentive to the people who were attending the function. The first mistake was to allow the protesters to be on the same block where we were forced to wait in line for nearly an hour. They were screaming at people and would not let us be. The protesters were allowed to literally get into our faces and at one point, when I yelled back to a protester yelling in my children’s faces, I was the one who was told to back down and step back over the line away from the protester, although it was the protester who came up to us and held signs and started yelling at us.

If it had been any other legal situation, I would have been well within my rights to tell a total stranger leave my children alone, but I was treated as the trespasser although we had no other place to go to get into the function. The people in line had children crying and upset because of these protesters and we were held hostage to their whims. There is no reason why they should not have been put across the street on any other of the three corners available and kept a certain distance from us.

I believe in free speech, but this is not what I experienced Thursday night and the police and the city should have protected my rights to attend the function without being harass and to protect my children. Shame on you Everett … these are your children and future citizens as well. Thank you.

Judith R. Hendricks, Inc., P.S.

Attorney at Law

Everett