Part 1 of an investigative report
By Rockland News Staff
March 26, 2025
In recent weeks, Rockland County has found itself at the center of an identity debate playing out on local turf, on TV, and on local social media community groups.
It has also affected the conversations by elected political officials, who – while still addressing current legislation – are now simultaneously addressing multiple disparities of opinion. Responses include a wide array of public statements tense meetings, press releases, and occasionally – angry protests.
In this article, Rockland News will focus on one specific organization that has been near the apex of the more controversial protests: Indivisible Rockland. All information in this article has been publicly verified.
Statements that could not be corroborated by multiple sources are not included in this article. We also intend to gather further information in this ongoing report.
Key local officials at the center of the political discourse:
The Lead-Up to Our Investigation
Several politically-charged protests and near-violent activity has been noted by our Rockland News team in the past 2.5 weeks.
At a recent Rockland Business Association meeting, 12-15 protestors entered a room and waved signs, disallowing speaker Congressman Mike Lawler (District 17) from answering questions from the open floor of 110 small business owners and Town officials in Rockland, cross spectrum, from numerous backgrounds and thought processes.
People were noted to fall to the ground during the fracas, and Orangetown Police were called to peacefully escort the protesters out of the room. We spoke with, and/or requested comment from individuals who were in attendance of the event. Responses by several individuals are listed below.
In another recent incident, a candidate for that same District 17 attended a local political rally, and refused to denounce, a set of political signs that referenced a 1930s/40s former genocidal leader of a European country. (We at Rockland News choose to refrain from writing that name in this article, in order to not besmirch this website, or its tight focus in search engines. Our aim is to cover Rockland. Please refer to well-regarded History books at your local Rockland-based library.)
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Rockland Music Fest in September at Clover Stadium in Pomona.
FaceBook event is here for boomers and zoomers alike.
Results of Rockland News’ Investigation
Rockland News investigative reporters have tunneled online into numerous social media groups that openly discuss plans, and vent their frustrations about recent legislation currently under debate, which – as is all budgetary considerations – have wide-ranging consequences.
For example, Reddit’s r/Rockland group – currently at over 5.6k members – largely serves as a moderated community activity and conversation portal for residents, has seen a significant uptick in local political and legislative discussion – yet still has insightful conversations about local friends seeking to start a rock band, or asking about cool restaurants in the area, or suggestions for local book stores and libraries in the area.
Over the past three weeks, numerous posts, as well as on other locations such as old school bulletin board websites (Craigslist Hudson Valley) and other social media outlets (Instagram, various) have openly identified a central organization – national in scope – which organizes and funds local efforts to disrupt what they perceive to be, unfavorable status quo.
What is Indivisible Rockland?
The name of the local group is called ‘Indivisible Rockland‘, a self-identifying political advocacy group, which is a local chapter of the national Indivisible political action group. Indivisible’s recent protests have drawn sharp criticism—and sparked serious conversations—among residents, small business owners, and elected officials.
According to its public-facing website’s About page, its organizers are as follows: Bill Batson, Pascale Jean-Gilles, Nelcy Garcia De Leon , L’Tanya Watkins, Debbie Stedge, Darcy Casteleiro, Tracey Obenauer.
Indivisible Rockland identifies itself as a progressive grassroots organization dedicated to resisting what it currently sees as threats to democracy. Its mission, according to the group’s website rocklandunited.org, is to “promote civic engagement and advocate for policies that align with its values of justice, equity, and inclusion.”
On the website, there is no note or encouragement of violence during protest (Except possibly for the word ‘fight’ on the home page). However, from our team’s analysis of the website, it also does not denounce general disruption of local activities, regardless of the political persuasion of its geographical targets.
One local official who asked to remain nameless, supplied an interesting theory:
“Perhaps it’s to reduce liability on the central Indivisible organization. Less need for Insurance means less need for lawyers paid to defend the political action group, which frees up more donation money to further spread its message. If the individual organizations go over the line, they can maintain plausible deniability, and swat aside potential litigation.”
The insurance industry is listed by numerous publications and various Government entities as the #1 largest economic industry in the world, in front of drivers such as the oil industry, which currently sits at #4 on many top ten lists. The stats do not include cash and/or crypto payments, merely what is accounted for.
(Coming Soon: Rockland News’ update on the new Thiells roundabout traffic circle.)
Indivisible’s Umbrella Org: 8-Years Plans, 23 Page Manifesto
The national Indivisible.org was founded in the aftermath of the 2016 U.S. presidential election to support local organizing against what it called the erosion of democratic norms. Wikipedia noted that the 23-page handbook (now 30) by which they modeled their movement was similar to that of the Tea Party movement of the 2000s/10s. Similarly, as recent events show, the tactics employed by Indivisible Rockland have proven – at very least, controversial.
One particularly tense incident occurred at last Friday’s Rockland Business Association (RBA) meeting, attended by over 100 small business owners and local officials. According to eyewitness accounts, a group of 12 to 15 protestors disrupted the event with chants and signs denouncing current political figures, including Rep. Mike Lawler, who represents New York’s 17th Congressional District.
The demonstration escalated quickly, with shouting turning into shoving. Several attendees fell during the confrontation – with protestors and attendees alike accusing each other of inciting violence.
RBA CEO Al Samuels – who was seen attempting to diffuse tensions during the protest – raised concerns about protest safety…and its unintended consequences. Samuels recently turned over available video footage to the Orangetown Police, who were called to peacefully escort the protestors out of the room.
At least two individuals in attendance at the meeting cited specific individual, Walter Masterson, was a driving force of the protest – and according to his own Instagram page, posts videos of his interactions with political figures, and by all noted visuals…openly encourages “visiting people’s homes”, without invitation or permit.
In a separate protest, Beth Davidson, Legislator for Rockland County, recently announced her intention to challenge Rep. Mike Lawler for his District 17 seat, and spoke at a politically charged event that included imagery of the aforementioned 1930’s/40’s genocidal dictator. (The controversial use of such imagery was reportedly intended to draw attention to what organizers believe are dangerous political trends that they perceive to currently be aligning.)
Yet, for many observers, the recent tactics crossed a line, stirring emotional backlash and sparking renewed debate on how political dissent should be expressed in a democratic society.
“They stormed the room, and we couldn’t ask questions,” said one attendee of the RBA event. “Isn’t that the whole point of having meetings? To ask questions and get answers?”
On the Rockland News podcast on Friday, Valerie Moldow from the Nanuet Civic Association will be part of a panel of guests to discuss civics in times of disagreement. Panel guests will also include NYS Senator Bill Weber, as well as several others that Rockland News has invited, for comment.
Rockland’s Local Public Reacts
- “The protests are dumb”, said one social media commenter.
- “Keep up the good work”, said another social media commentor.
- “Does anyone know what’s the best nail salon?” Said a third social media commenter.
- ”When are the dogs running down 210 going to be investigated?”, said Michael a longtime Rockland News contributor on Facebook.
Supporters of the recent protests have cited their frustration with Congressman Mike Lawler’s voting record on recent budget bills, which at least a significant portion of the local population have grown concerned about the potential loss of benefits as a result of the outcome of Congressional votes over the next several months, many have which have not yet been signed into law, by the executive branch of the Federal and NYS Governments, respectively. And pressure is mounting.
Lawler himself noted in the aftermath of the protest to the remaining audience, “If you think that’s bad, you should see what happens when I go back to Washington in the next two weeks.” In a recent podcast with Rockland News reporter Keith S., he stated his overall intent and plans for voting, and has held several open sessions, including one at Clover Stadium, which got mixes of applause and boos – as is tradition. He also plans to hold more local meetings.
County Executive Ed Day – who recently parried a statement by County Legislator Alden Wolfe, who alluded to an alternate governance model of having an unelected “County Manager” to oversee Executive duties, said of the Davidson-attended political rally on his Facebook Page:
“While Senator Weber and I joined hundreds of our neighbors in Suffern in celebration of our young people bringing pride and achievement with State championship others here simply gave Rockland an unnecessary black eye with this disgusting and hateful rhetoric.”
While the stated goals of Indivisible Rockland—such as protecting voting rights, promoting transparency, and resisting extremism are placed in the public eye online and offline, the means by which those goals are pursued have raised broader questions, especially with the local Rockland public.
Online Conversations Put Stress on Social Media Moderators
On for instance the Reddit Rockland group, people in favor of various political opinions and openly express them, but happen to be not in alignment with the original poster, are quickly downvoted, which leads to the dissenter’s loss of Reddit’s digital currency, Karma.
One Redditor, who recently passed the 9-year subscription on Reddit, stated “It’s actually a calmer way of discussing all sorts of topics. You find topics you like in subreddits, and then you talk about things. It’s more of a focus on the topics, not the people endorsing them. But yeah…if you say anything that a lot of people on that threat don’t like, expect to get downvoted. And karma is cool if you have it.”
Many of the subreddits, such as r/Rockland have moderators that devote their time to ensuring that no speech encouraging hate or violence is allowed or condoned, and those that violate terms and conditions are suspended or removed from the groups.
In recent weeks, however – confrontations have escalated, and suspensions have been handed out.
Scientific Studies Endorses Dialogue
Social science research shows that violent or chaotic protests often do not achieve the intended shift in public opinion. Studies, including those cited by political scientists from institutions like Harvard and Stanford, have demonstrated that when activism turns aggressive, it may alienate moderates and galvanize opposition.
Peaceful protest, by contrast, tends to foster dialogue and empathy, even among those with differing political views. Cambridge’s American Political Science Review – in their 2022 study, researched the effects of violent protests, which potentially alters the intended perception and identity of the political party for which it fights.
For Rockland County—a region with a rich civic culture and a diverse tapestry of viewpoints—the challenge moving forward lies in balancing the right to protest with the need for public safety and civil discourse. Questions of residential housing, workforce development in 2025 still pend, and the ongoing effort to ensure that the people most vulnerable in Rockland County are provided for by public and private entities alike, remains a noble challenge.
As stated by a local, highly regarded business owner in New City, NY: “The only thing that does not divide us is the fact that most people are struggling financially.”
As for Indivisible Rockland, the group continues to organize, fundraise, and advocate. Whether its strategy in the coming weeks and months will help or hinder Rockland County’s future political trajectory, this remains to be seen.
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