SPRINGFIELD, MA (WSHM) -
As Election Day nears Springfield's NAACP president is taking preventative steps to ensure that there are no problems like there were four years ago when arsonists burned down a predominately black church after President Barack Obama was elected.
"We have the very real potential that should the president be re-elected we may see some similar types of hate crimes occur here in the Valley and we want to make sure that one of our churches does not fall victim to those types of acts again this year," said Springfield NAACP President Rev. Talbert Swan.
Swan is providing local churches with a 19-page, step-by-step guide in an effort to keep them safe on election night.
"We wanted to make sure that they took the necessary steps to safe guard their property and their churches or houses of worship from any acts of vandalism," Swan said.
Back in 2008 when Obama was elected, Macedonia Church of God in Christ was burned to the ground. Since that time the church has rebuilt and three Springfield men have been convicted of arson.
"We believe that the climate of racial division in the country and here in the Pioneer Valley is worse now than it was four years ago," Swan said.
At this point Springfield police don't anticipate a problem, but they are asking the community to alert them of anything they think is suspicious.
"If we get intelligence, and we have a lot of intelligence out there, that tells us that there might be some type of malicious damage or arson involving an area church then we will put police where the problem is," said Springfield Police Sgt. John Delaney.
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