Letter: Focus on unity, not division

In recent months, it has become far too easy to divide ourselves into camps.

Some say Rocky Mount's challenges are an Edgecombe County versus Nash County issue. Others frame them as black versus white, Republican versus Democrat, City Council versus the more informed, or those who have versus those who have not. But none of those divisions will solve a single problem or create a single opportunity for our future.

The truth is much simpler.

Rocky Mount's success belongs to all of us, and so do its struggles.

When a business opens its doors, we all benefit. When a neighborhood thrives, we all prosper. When a family succeeds, our community grows stronger. Likewise, when our city faces difficulties, every one of us feels the impact.

That is why now is not the time for finger-pointing. It is not the time for assigning blame or retreating into opposing corners. It is time for something more difficult — and far more important. It is time to work together.

The American experiment has always been built on spirited debate. We will not always agree, nor should we. The freedom to voice different opinions is one of our nation's great strengths and a defining feature of our democracy. Healthy disagreement helps us find better solutions.

But eventually, every community reaches a moment when it must decide whether disagreement will become division or whether differences will become strength.

Rocky Mount is at that moment.

We can continue to focus on what separates us, or we can focus on what unites us. We can dwell on yesterday's mistakes, or we can build tomorrow's successes. We can rise together, or we can fall apart together.

I know which future I choose.

I choose a Rocky Mount that believes in itself. A Rocky Mount that values cooperation over conflict, solutions over excuses and community over division. I choose a Rocky Mount where neighbors stand beside one another and work toward a common purpose.

Because when we come together — regardless of race, politics, geography, income or background — there is no challenge we cannot overcome.

The road ahead might not be easy, but our best days are still before us.

Let us choose to rise, together.

Because together, Rocky Mount is unstoppable.

Mayor Sandy Roberson