Dedham veterans offered an olive branch in the dispute over a fiberglass rabbit placed near a veterans monument in Oakdale Square.
The rabbit can stay, but only temporarily, said Norfolk County Commissioner Francis O’Brien.
“That bunny goes by September. If it doesn’t go, there will be further action taken,” O’Brien said at a Parks and Recreation Commission meeting on Monday.
About 70 people came to the meeting to discuss the rabbit, which was placed on the common in Oakdale Square on Sunday, June 10, as part of the Dedham Public Art Project. Many of the attendees wore clothes identifying themselves as members of the American Legion or Veterans of Foreign Wars in Dedham.
The Parks and Recreation Commission took the suggestion under advisement, but did not make a decision on the rabbit during the meeting.
Jennifer Barsamian, co-president of Dedham Public Art Project umbrella organization Dedham Shines, said after the meeting that her organization would go along with whatever decision the Parks and Recreation Commission makes.
The original plan was to have the rabbit on display for four to six months, and September would fit within that timeframe, Barsamian said.
Barsamian fell short of offering an apology to the veterans for not consulting with them, which was requested by Dedham VFW Post 2017 Commander Dana McQuaid at Monday’s meeting.
“We followed procedure and met with who we were told to meet with,” Barsamian said. “An apology is for when you do something wrong, and I don’t think we did anything wrong.”
While many attended the meeting, Parks and Recreation Commission chairman Dan Hart would allow only six people to speak before the board – three representatives from each side of the issue.
“This is our June meeting and we have the right to limit the discussion,” Hart said shortly after opening the meeting. “Just by people’s presence here, we understand your point of view.”
O’Brien, a veteran and outspoken opponent of the rabbit’s presence in Oakdale Square, objected to that limitation and so did others.
“We have several here this evening that would like to make comments,” O’Brien said. “It is not fair to shut these people off.”
Hart’s response was to stick by his original decision.
“If we continue to allow comments, we’re only going to get the same information from a different person,” he said.
The three to speak in favor of the rabbit were Monika Wilkinson, the other co-president of Dedham Shines; Mike Glowacki, one of the two artists who decorated the rabbit, and Marie-Louise Kehoe, a member of the Oakdale Monument Committee who approved the location.
Dedham veterans offered an olive branch in the dispute over a fiberglass rabbit placed near a veterans monument in Oakdale Square.
The rabbit can stay, but only temporarily, said Norfolk County Commissioner Francis O’Brien.
“That bunny goes by September. If it doesn’t go, there will be further action taken,” O’Brien said at a Parks and Recreation Commission meeting on Monday.
About 70 people came to the meeting to discuss the rabbit, which was placed on the common in Oakdale Square on Sunday, June 10, as part of the Dedham Public Art Project. Many of the attendees wore clothes identifying themselves as members of the American Legion or Veterans of Foreign Wars in Dedham.
The Parks and Recreation Commission took the suggestion under advisement, but did not make a decision on the rabbit during the meeting.
Jennifer Barsamian, co-president of Dedham Public Art Project umbrella organization Dedham Shines, said after the meeting that her organization would go along with whatever decision the Parks and Recreation Commission makes.
The original plan was to have the rabbit on display for four to six months, and September would fit within that timeframe, Barsamian said.
Barsamian fell short of offering an apology to the veterans for not consulting with them, which was requested by Dedham VFW Post 2017 Commander Dana McQuaid at Monday’s meeting.
“We followed procedure and met with who we were told to meet with,” Barsamian said. “An apology is for when you do something wrong, and I don’t think we did anything wrong.”
While many attended the meeting, Parks and Recreation Commission chairman Dan Hart would allow only six people to speak before the board – three representatives from each side of the issue.
“This is our June meeting and we have the right to limit the discussion,” Hart said shortly after opening the meeting. “Just by people’s presence here, we understand your point of view.”
O’Brien, a veteran and outspoken opponent of the rabbit’s presence in Oakdale Square, objected to that limitation and so did others.
“We have several here this evening that would like to make comments,” O’Brien said. “It is not fair to shut these people off.”
Hart’s response was to stick by his original decision.
“If we continue to allow comments, we’re only going to get the same information from a different person,” he said.
The three to speak in favor of the rabbit were Monika Wilkinson, the other co-president of Dedham Shines; Mike Glowacki, one of the two artists who decorated the rabbit, and Marie-Louise Kehoe, a member of the Oakdale Monument Committee who approved the location.
The three veterans representatives were O’Brien, McQuaid and National Executive Committeeman for the Massachusetts Department of the American Legion Michael Cassidy.
Cassidy said monuments to veterans around the country are being shown less respect than they deserve.
“When you in Dedham dedicated that memorial of the veterans of the community and the land surrounding it, you accepted a responsibility to ensure the town of Dedham and those visiting realize the sacrifices those men and women made,” Cassidy said.
He added that he respected residents’ right to free speech and public expression, but not at the expense of respect to a veterans’ monument, which he said was “desecrated” as a result of the presence of the rabbit.
Kehoe clarified that the Oakdale Square monument was not a memorial, but a tribute to all veterans - past, present and future.
Emotional but clear-spoken at the microphone, Kehoe said she had raised much of the $250,000 used to erect the monument in 2004 and that her husband was a proud United States Marine.
“I cannot tell you how much respect I have for the veterans and I have been accused of having no respect for the veterans,” Kehoe said. “This has been very hurtful to me.”
Kehoe was consulted by the Dedham Public Art Project about the placement of the rabbit and said she was hesitant about it at first. She and another Oakdale Monument Committee member selected an area a certain distance away from the monument that they thought would be appropriate, she said.
“Shame on us if we made a mistake, but I don’t believe we did,” Kehoe said. “I believe we did what was right in paying tribute to all veterans, past present and future.”
Glowacki, who in addition to being an artist is a veteran of wars in Iraq and Somalia, said he knew he was working on what would be a tribute to recently deceased Dedham veteran Joe Pagliuca.
“I’m proud of my work, and if anyone thinks I did something disgraceful, I’d like for them to tell me right now,” Glowacki said.
No one spoke for several tense seconds. Then former American Legion Post 18 Commander Walter Kaeding stood up to commend Glowacki for his service.
“You have a lot to be proud of,” Keading said. “Stick your chest out.”
Both Kehoe and Glowacki received applause from the whole room after speaking.
McQuaid and O’Brien both said the rabbit was not a fitting tribute to Pagliuca and were angry that neither the town veterans agent or the Combined Veterans Council were notified.
O’Brien requested to the Parks and Recreation Commission that the veterans agent be notified about any future licenses to place something in the common on Oakdale Square.
Representatives from Honor Guards in veterans organizations in Dedham had recently refused to fire a gun salute in the presence of the rabbit at the town's Flag Day Parade.
Wilkinson said the Dedham Public Art Project acted only with positive intentions. Although troubled by the controversy surrounding the rabbit, Wilkinson said that the fiberglass bunny did fulfill a role of public art – as a catalyst for important discussion.
The Dedham Public Art Project will auction off the rabbits – 15 in all – later this year to support an arts and community center at the former Avery Elementary School building.
The Dedham Parks and Recreation Commission will make a decision about the rabbit at a future meeting, according to Hart.
Staff writer Dave Eisenstadter can be reached at 781-433-8336 or deisenstadter@wickedlocal.com. Like The Dedham Transcript on Facebook and follow @DedhamTranscrip on Twitter.
