After apologizing for sending a racist e-mail regarding first lady Michelle Obama and promising the mistake wouldn’t be repeated, Casco Selectwoman Barbara York was officially censured by her fellow board members Tuesday night.

“Nothing like this will ever happen again,” said York. “I’ve learned my lesson.”

The move came at the beginning of what would be an hour-long meeting marked by public comments both praising and damning of the long-serving York. York and fellow Selectmen were relieved when the meeting was over, eager to move on to town business unrelated to the contentious issue that has sparked outrage in Casco and beyond. “I am hoping something positive comes out of this, and for me, who didn’t really think about what I was doing regarding the e-mails, once all this came to light a couple weeks ago, I’ve been very aware of it,” York said after the meeting.

The e-mail in question was forwarded July 31, 2009 to York’s daughter Becky Andrews as well as numerous other contacts including selectmen, the Casco Village Church and friends and family of York. The e-mail, of which the Lakes Region Weekly has retained a copy, compared Michelle Obama to an ape, showing Obama speaking alongside a photo of an ape with a similar expression. It also intimated the first lady was the descendent of apes while the white Sarah Palin was descended from Adam and Eve. “For me, I knew some action had to happen,” York said regarding the censure. “They couldn’t remove me, but for me I did something that was not right, and I’ve taught my children that when you do something wrong, you admit to it. But I come away from this having learned something. And the positive thing is we need to do something good for this community.” The reaction from those in attendance Tuesday night, held in the Casco fire station on Route 121, turned heavily in York’s favor after the comments of two black residents, Mary Fernandes and Antonio Jackson. Fernandes, the woman who publicly demanded York’s resignation after receiving a copy of York’s forwarded e-mail depicting the first lady with ape-like facial contortions and alleging that she was descended from apes, said at the meeting, “Barbara York, I accept your apology.” She then suggested the town institute a new e-mail policy and code of ethics that would possibly prevent such embarrassing episodes in the future. Jackson, who had also called for York to step down at the last Selectmen’s meeting, told the audience that he had changed his mind after getting to know York in the interim. “In that two-week time, I’ve gotten more than a glimpse on a piece of paper that was forwarded to individuals, and I’ve gotten a better glimpse of who Barbara York is as a person. She has personally apologized to me. She has personally apologized to my family. She’s personally apologized today to my neighbors,” Jackson said. “What I am asking my neighbors to do here today is to support me, to stand with me, and forgive Ms. York.” Jackson’s comments garnered a 40-second standing ovation from supporters of York who were in the audience. And in what was the emotional highlight of the meeting, York walked over to Jackson while the audience was applauding and embraced the man who weeks earlier had sternly demanded her resignation. “Forgiveness seemed to be in the air,” said Town Manager David Morton after the meeting. “The majority of people seemed to have that in their hearts. The sequel will be can we build on this in terms of bringing the community together, addressing concerns of how we want to treat everybody with respect. It’s not the kind of thing you can enforce, but it’s the kind of thing that I think would be a powerful statement.” The long-serving town manager, who spoke little at the meeting, said the board met before the meeting with town attorney Bill Dale to decide how the meeting would be conducted. Each person would be allowed three minutes, and the only topic addressed would be York’s e-mail. While most speakers kept to these “ground rules,” as Dale explained them prior to the public comment period, others brought in other issues such as underlying concerns of misappropriation of money in a town fuel assistance fund, Casco Helping Casco. The fund was brought up several times, and, each time, Board chairman Calvin Nutting reminded speakers to limit their comment to the e-mail issue. “We didn’t want to create any deflection. We were well aware of that. We were trying to avoid that, stay on topic. We didn’t want to get off the topic. We wanted this to be the issue. We wanted the community to have a chance to talk it through,” Morton said afterward. Showing the polarity of the much-publicized issue, the meeting flared at several points with some speakers refusing to limit their comments to three minutes. Several residents renewed calls for York’s resignation, calling her act a disgrace to the town. Others publicly criticized those who brought the e-mail to light, calling that act despicable as well. And, in addition to Fernandes’ and Jackson’s call for forgiveness, another moment will probably be long-remembered by meeting attendees: Casco resident Lorna Dingley’s confrontation with Chairman Nutting. After Nutting tried to limit her to the allotted three minutes, Dingley left the microphone and got in Nutting’s face refusing to leave until she was granted time to finish her comments in support of York. The shouting match set the tone for much of the early part of the meeting, until Fernandes’ and Jackson’s comments eased the tension. “She just wasn’t following the ground rules. I wasn’t picking on her, we all have to jump through the same hoops,” Nutting said later concerning the incident. Kevin Hancock, owner of Hancock Lumber, also spoke at the meeting, and believes the meeting will lead to healing in the community. “I thought the meeting was very healthy and productive. I thought the important points about standing up for people’s rights and standing against prejudice came across clear tonight in an important way, including from Barbara York herself. And I thought forgiveness came across tonight in a clear and powerful way. I think the seeds of very positive things were sown tonight.”

In an unexpected turn, the man who two weeks earlier had called for Casco Selectwoman Barbara York to resign for sending a racist e-mail accepts an embrace from York, who approached Antonio Jackson after Jackson urged those assembled to forgive York as he and his family had done. The embrace was a turning point in the meeting, in which many Casco residents rose to praise or condemn York. At left, Jeannine Lauber Oren, the woman who informed the media of the racist e-mail, joined in the audience’s standing ovation that lasted 40 seconds. (Staff photo by Brandon McKenney)The meeting was loud and contentious at times, especially early on when Lorna Dingley approached Board of Selectmen Chairman Calvin Nutting demanding she be given more than three minutes to speak her mind on the subject that has divided Casco in recent weeks. (Staff photo by Brandon McKenney)