GEORGETOWN, DE - Hundreds attended the bi-annual Return Day ceremony in Georgetown on Thursday. WBOC spoke with multiple neighbors who said the day's traditions leave them hoping to unify their communities in a time of political tension.
Many of the day's traditions involve politicians coming together across party lines. The tradition of the parade sees political candidates, winners and losers from different parties, riding alongside one another after the election season.
After the parade's conclusion, candidates both figuratively and literally bury the hatchet; which event officials told us is to signify putting differences aside and getting ready to work for the community.
Many attendees that WBOC spoke with Thursday said the spirit of the day left them hoping to find unity with neighbors across party lines.
"This particular election the climate was really ugly," one attendee, Sharon Pitcher said. "And, you know, we're all one America."
Pitcher said she attended the festival with friends from across the political spectrum.
"Look at my husband and the gentleman sitting next to him. We were Harris supporters, and he was a Trump supporter," Pitcher said. "And that's the kind of thing I think this day is about."
Other neighbors WBOC spoke with Thursday shared similar sentiments.
"The whole bury the hatchet principle puts the politics behind us because it's over," attendee Bill Crandall said. "I wish there was more across the aisle working together, and events like this are good for that."
"We all have different opinions and different beliefs, but that's okay," Gayle Reed-Attoh, another neighbor, said. "But when we come together, and everyone is sitting at the table together, we can make change."
Monica Glickman, another parade-goer, said she thinks the day is also about looking to the future.
"I'm burying the hatchet but I'm not ending the fight," Glickman said. "There's a lot of disadvantages that some groups suffer from that really we need to bring forward. To make it more equal for everybody."
When WBOC asked attendees what they're hoping for in the next few years, many of them shared that they hope politicians will listen to their communities, and continue working across the aisle in the spirit of Return Day.
