Hundreds Rally To Show Support For France In Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- Hundreds rallied on Boston Common Sunday in solidarity with the people of France in the wake of deadly terrorist attacks.
The demonstrators waved French flags and held signs that read "Je Suis Charlie," which has become a rallying cry after 12 people were gunned down at the Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine in Paris.
Sunday's event was held on the Parkman Bandstand on the Common.
"We are moved to see so many that have gathered," said Fabien Fieschi, the consul general of France in Boston. "We see, all around us, this solidarity, this sense of fraternity which is very important."
Helene Rieu-Isaacs, of Arlington, came out to stand with her fellow "citizens of the world."
"I'm super proud of all of us here and all of us in the world who stand up and say, 'no, it cannot be like this. It has to stop,'" she said. "Love and life are greater than hate and ignorance."
Frank DuBourdieu and Raphaelle DuBourdieu, both French citizens living in Cambridge, wanted to spread a message of tolerance.
"Islam is not bad," Frank DuBourdieu said. "We have to make sure that France is going to continue to welcome people, but reject any violence."
It's been a stressful week for both of them.
"We just talk about tolerance with our children and also different religions and the way that we can live together," Raphalle DuBourdieu said. "Even if we have different thinking."
On Saturday, the French Cultural Center held a gathering of its own to celebrate the work of Charlie Hebdo journalists and cartoonists.
"We wanted really to offer a safe space to for our communities to be together and celebrate the lives lost and also remember the values we share and that we continue to uphold together," Catheline van den Branden, president of the French Cultural Center told WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Kim Tunnicliffe.
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Kim Tunnicliffe reports:
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