by Francesco Luna
The pain of the Kerchers for the tragic, horrible loss of Meredith is immense and deserves respect. But now time has come for them to come forward and exit from ambiguity. They are good people and they don’t want other lives to be taken because of this tragedy. They have now a responsibility that they cannot ignore: to avoid more violence and more tragedy. There is a large group of people who have been relentlessly threatening and insulting Amanda Knox since this story began, in 2007. They have grown more and more violent and aggressive, but until last Friday, 27 March 2015, they had a goal: to see Amanda convicted for Meredith’s murder. Now that the Italian Supreme Court has officially said that Amanda is not responsible for that murder, they are really going crazy.
These people have been dubbed “haters”, and for a reason. They are blinded by hate. They are not all violent or potentially dangerous, of course, but surely someone in that group is. I read, yesterday, that FBI is taking threats to Amanda Knox very seriously. This is a serious alarm that should not be ignored.
There is one thing the Kerchers should seriously understand, now. These crazy people are letting their frustration off in their name. They are hiding behind Meredith’s name and photo to discharge an incredibly large load of anger, hate and aggressiveness through social media and elsewhere. There is a serious risk that someone belonging to that group decide to go to Seattle and think to become the hero who avenged Meredith.
The Kerchers should not allow this. Not in Meredith’s name. Enough blood has been shed, enough pain, enough tragedy. It is time for them to speak clearly.
Kerchers’ remarks after Friday’s verdict are not in the right direction. Saying that they don’t understand the SC’s decision is not acceptable. They understand it, it’s just they don’t want to. The decision is very clear: Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito are not those the Kerchers thought they were. They did not kill Meredith. Repeating that they “don’t understand” and that they are “surprised and shocked” does not help and is not right. There is really nothing to understand, it is extremely simple. Rudy Guede killed their daughter and sister: he was robbing her apartment when she returned home and he brutally murdered her.
It is time to end this tragic saga and to avoid more senseless crime. The Kerchers are the only ones who can do it. Whoever can reach out to them, should explain this to them. They need to say clearly that they accept the decision and that they will not support any act of violence, hate, aggressiveness towards the former defendants. And they have to do it now. Before it’s too late.