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OPINION

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Fauquier Times | June 24, 2020

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

The importance of speaking out against racial injustice and discrimination

As I struggled with writing this letter, one thought kept haunting me. How can a white woman of privilege write about Juneteenth, continual racial oppression and inequality, and sustaining the momentum of the recent Black Lives Matters protests? I felt like an alien invader into sacred space others (Black people) have inhabited all of their lives.

I pushed forward not because I claim to understand their suffering. I don’t. Not because I have felt their pain. I haven’t. Not because I have ever feared for my life or my children’s lives when they walk out the door. I haven’t. Not because I’ve awoken in the morning to consider what insult or demeaning experience I might have today. I haven’t.

I write because my heart seizes anew with each report of another act of police brutality or murder of a Black citizen. This is a tangible reality of the Black experience in our society. I can no longer remain silent and hope somehow things will change, that others will see the light. No, not anymore. It is time to speak out and not stop speaking out until meaningful change occurs.

There are many proposals that hold promise – demilitarizing the police, regulating police operations to include properly vetting candidates, better training, banning brutal practices including the infamous, often deadly chokeholds, and requiring immediate disciplinary action when those rules are violated.

Our own policing organizations, as represented by Sheriff [Robert] Mosier and Warrenton Police Chief [Mike] Kochis, have both stepped up through written and verbal statements of support for the Black Lives Matter movement, as well as attending the recent rally in Eva Walker Park. This is the type of action all policing organizations should start with, while other, definitive measures are considered and implemented.

As individuals, we have an important role to play. We must think

Grandparents beware!

Today, we received a call from a “lawyer” named Tom Duncan with a very believable story. Our grandson has been in an automobile accident that resulted in injury to a young woman. He had rear-ended another car and was charged with reckless driving. He was arrested and would require a $20,000 bail (lowered from $30,000 with the help of the “lawyer”). Before the “lawyer” could tell us where to send the bail money, I asked where the accident had taken about and identify our own biases and change our behaviors. A good start is educating ourselves on the real history of Black oppression in our society and globally. There are many lessons that we weren’t taught in school which can inform our recognition of the Black struggle. One excellent local source is the Afro-American Historical Association of Fauquier County: https://www. aahafauquier.org.

We must cast votes for candidates who are committed to racial equality and addressing police brutality. We must agitate in whatever ways we can -- whether through verbal and written contact with our congressional representatives, or in-person events – until change occurs.

Finally, this brings me to Juneteenth. For those of you who aren’t familiar with it, it is the day citizens of all races, and particularly, Black citizens, celebrate emancipation. Why? Because Juneteenth – June 19, 1865 -- marks the date of the surrender of the last territory held by the Army of the Confederacy and the official end of slavery for the estimated quarter of a million enslaved people.

Here is an excerpt from that declaration: “The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor.”

In reflecting on the reference to equality, I realize the truth that equality necessitates equal protection under the law. Can we pretend Blacks have ever been treated equally? Let us join in honoring Black citizens and ourselves by ensuring we finally achieve the promise of “absolute equality,” 155 years after the final Emancipation Act was proclaimed.

KATHY KADILAK

A cautionary tale about a scam

The Plains place. He said in front of the CVS store. When I asked which street and town, there was suddenly no one on the line.

This happened to us once before so we were wary, and rightly so, when it involved our grandson and money was involved. As grandparents, we are always concerned for our grandchildren, and we seem to be easy targets for nefarious people.

So, again, grandparents beware!

HARRIETT CARLSON

Broad Run

Recent events offer hope for change

In an ongoing effort to try and remain Susie Sunshine (and not Debbie Downer) during this unsettling, frightening and extremely divisive time, I’d like to note two different events that give me hope that America is capable of recognizing its faults and weaknesses and can make the necessary changes to correct course and address issues of inequality.

First, I’d like to give a shout out and recognize that this July marks the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) becoming law. In enacting the ADA, Congress intended that the act "provide a clear and comprehensive national mandate for the elimination of discrimination against individuals with disabilities." Congress also recognized that “physical and mental disabilities in no way diminish a person's right to fully participate in all aspects of society, but that people with physical or mental disabilities are frequently precluded from doing so because of prejudice, antiquated attitudes, or the failure to remove societal and institutional barriers.” The ADA’s passage and its future revisions and amendments, although not a complete solution, did right several wrongs and helped numerous areas that needed addressing.

Second, a recent example of rec

Birthdays are funny events. Celebrating one more year of life that we have passed, excitement of another year upon us. No matter how one likes to celebrate, one thing is for sure, people deserve to live and see their birthdays. Sadly, this has not turned out to be true in the case of Breonna Taylor. She would have had the chance to celebrate her 27th birthday on June 5, had she not been shot by the police on March 13.

The protests that have been induced since the death of George Floyd have started difficult conversations and highlighted the systemic oppression against African American community. Despite this, we still need to keep echoing the name of Breonna Taylor so that she may also get a fair chance at justice as well. On June 11, Louisville council unanognizing and addressing inequality was the U.S. Supreme Court decision that the 1964 Civil Rights Act protects gay, lesbian, and transgender employees from discrimination. This was long overdue and the country righted another wrong.

Change often moves at a glacial pace, which is unfair, but it can and does happen. Recent events highlight all that is wrong with the inequality Black ... Americans have endured since being forcefully brought to America. This too must change, and the change needs to begin now. The necessary changes won’t happen quickly enough (it would be wonderful if they could), but they must start now. The rapidity of change depends on everyone joining in the call for change, not just those who are victims of inequality. Perhaps some self-reflection of one’s own attitudes and behaviors is needed and a good place to start the change. I’m not a biologist but I do know that as human beings we are all of the same genus and species, so let’s stop treating each other as if we are somehow different and work together for needed change. We have shown we know how to change as a country; we just need the

KIRSTEN KING

Warrenton

A call for justice for Breonna Taylor

will to do so. imously banned no-knock warrants, known as “Breonna’s Law.” The law is a start, a rugged path leading toward the road of justice. However, it is up to us to see that Breonna Taylor, Eric Garner and countless other people get the justice they very well deserve, as well as ensure that countless other names are not added to the list.

In order to live a just life, it is narrated in the Holy Quran that, “Among His Signs is the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the diversity of your tongues and colors.” (30:23). This diversity should be accepted, while making sure that supreme justice is achieved, and kindness prevails all.

MNAHIL KHAN

Bristow

Letters to the Editor

The Fauquier Times welcomes letters to the editor from its readers as a forum for discussion of local public affairs subjects. WRITE: Letters to the Editor 41 Culpeper Street Warrenton, VA 20188 FAX: Editor 540-349-8676 EMAIL: news@fauquier.com

Letters must be signed by the writer. Messages sent via email must say “Letter to the Editor” to distinguish them from other messages not meant for publication. Include address and phone for verification (Not to be published.) Letters are subject to editing for clarity and length. Personal attacks will not be published. Long letters from those with special authority on a current issue may be treated as a guest column (with photo requested). Due to volume, letters cannot be acknowledged. All letters are appreciated. Letters must be received by 5 p.m. Monday to be considered for Wednesday publication.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Leave law enforcement out of mask debate

The letter below was written by author and journalist E.B. White to Markam resident [Mary] Blake Green in 1974.

White worked for Harper’s Magazine and the New Yorker, and is famous for several of his children’s books, including “Stuart Little” and “Charlotte’s Web.” In addition to many prestigious awards for his writing, in 1978 White won a Pulitzer Prize Special Citation for his letters, essays and the full body of his work.

A reporter at the San Francisco Chronicle in the 1970s, Green called the New Yorker to try and arrange an interview with White about the idea of “de-sexing the language.”

White declined to be interviewed but wrote the following letter to Green instead. “I thought we should just run the letter and skip my story, but we used excerpts from the letter in the story,” Green said.

When White died in 1985, Green said that the letter ran in the San Francisco Chronicle with his obituary.

I am writing in response to the letter from Dr. [David] Pfeffer that appeared in the June 10 edition to the Times [Face infection dramatically].

On the whole, I agree with his comments about the wearing of masks and the protection they provide. I am one of the 67% who wear one in Giant or 47% who wear one in Walmart ... I wear mine whenever I am inside a public place (but not outdoors).

However, I take the strongest exception to his comment that “a nominal fine would bring the majority of individuals into compliance.” Who would enforce this and how?

At a time when certain elements of society are screaming to defund law enforcement agencies and the police themselves are forced to become extra cautious when confronting lawbreakers, do we really want the Warrenton Police Department or the Sheriff’s Office to station their men in front of Food Lion and address individuals not wearing masks? Do they turn them away?

The potential for confrontation over such a simple matter is enormous. Wear a mask or don't … keep social distancing or don't. Most people in checkout lines in stores seem to be compliant with that at least. But let's keep the subject of enforcement off the table.

JEFF DOMBROFF

Warrenton

E.B. White’s letter to Blake Green of Markam resurfaces after 46 years

masks reduce risk of COVID-19

Dear Miss Green: September 10, 1974

Some words or expressions in the language can rightly be called “sexist,” but a lot of them merely affirm the difference between the two sexes, which is real. Our treasured tongue is like a Geiger counter, telling us what is going on beneath the surface. Many crusaders today tend, in my opinion, to confuse sex differences with sex inequality: they jump at the sound of any word that carries the taint of gender, and this has led to some comical transformations. Occasionally it has led to a loss of vigor. There’s no doubt that language has played a role in reinforcing inequality. But true inequality does not lie in our tongue, it lies in our hearts and habits, and language is remarkably sensitive to both – it manages to capture the state of our affairs, the state of our mind. The word “chairman,” which today irritates some people, came into existence at a time when most of the persons occupying the chair were males. The language was simply being realistic. There’s nothing wrong with “chairwoman,” (except that it sounds a little like “charwoman”), but I fail to see the reason for all the fuss. Everyone recognizes that the chair, nowadays, may be occupied either by a male or a female, and the syllable “-man” in the word has long since lost any suggestion of gender. “Chairperson” is a weak, even silly word; and I think “camera operator” is a mighty clumsy substitute for the good word “cameraman.” “Chick” and “doll” and “dame” are sexist words. They would be inadmissible in McGraw Hill’s laudable lexicon, and they are deemed insulting by women who, in their zeal to find an illusory equality in a world of guys and dolls are in danger of losing their sense of fun, their sense of humor, and their sense of reality. “There is nothing like a dame” is a sexist song title, but I would feel cheated if the song had not got written, just as I would feel cheated if I had never heard “Drink to me only with thine eyes.” The one is rowdy, the other is sentimental, but they are the same song essentially, and the language in both cases is working beautifully. To reshape the language solely in the hope of rendering it non-discriminatory is as questionable a pursuit as to compose music in the hope that it will not wake the baby. A unisex tongue would be a dull tongue, and a false one. If a sailing boat is commonly referred to as “she,” it’s because ships have long been the object of men’s strongest feelings and affections. Nothing wrong with that – it’s kind of nice. And if you ever go sailing with me in my sloop and fall into the sea, I shall cry, “Man overboard!” and I will do my level best to recover you in the shortest possible time. – E.B. White

A message to the community

I, like many of you, continue to feel waves of emotion regarding the death of George Floyd. Like many of you, my emotions range from sadness to frustration to anger. Like many of you, I have struggled with finding the words to express my thoughts on the tragedy.

However, I believe it is important for leaders to speak out on these issues. The simple fact is, like you, I am outraged. As an African American male, and the uncle of two young African American boys, I am incredibly concerned about what their future looks like in our country if we do not start to address the injustice we are seeing take place within our communities, at what would seem like an increased frequency.

We must never allow our communities to become desensitized to injustice in any form, perpetrated by anyone. I am sure many of us can identify with Ahmaud Arbery, who was going about his regular routine before he was gunned down. Now we see the death of George Floyd, in what is another senseless loss of life.

I encourage each of us to take time to address our feelings about these tragedies and to have meaningful dialogue with those close to us. I encourage each of us to educate ourselves on the issues, so the conversations we have in our own communities are productive and produce meaningful results. In my opinion, now is the time to speak not as individual voices alone, but as one united choir of voices lifting up one unified message: injustice is no longer an option.

While George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery were not residents of the Town of Warrenton, Virginia, I am reminded of the words of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. --- “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” We are all stakeholders in these issues, and it is up to us to use our collective voices to peacefully speak out.

We must use our collective voices not only to speak to these tragedies, but to continue the conversation of ending injustice, which is a threat to us all. Change will not come overnight, and change is hard.

The waves of emotions we each feel regarding these tragedies are just and understandable; however, what comes next is the hard part. Channeling our emotions into productive actions which address the issue at hand, build bridges that connect us where we are divided, and heal the wounds of injustice affecting our communities. We can no longer sit on the sidelines, waiting for others to carry the burden of civil rights for our generation, it is now our time to pick up the baton and run the race. I have confidence in our community to do just that.

RENARD CARLOS

Warrenton Town Council, member at Large