Letters to the editor for May 1
County Democrats support students’ effort to end racism
At a recent meeting, the Thurston County Democrats passed a resolution supporting local student efforts to create a safe school environment free from racism and sexism. Like many others in Thurston County, our membership was outraged and deeply concerned about recent racist incidents happening in our local schools.
These incidents include a basketball game where a white Capital High School student called a Black player for River Ridge High School a “gorilla.” In another incident, a North Thurston School District student shared a poem during a Martin Luther King Jr. virtual assembly that resulted in backlash and hateful comments online. And students report that racism and sexism is heard frequently and that every day students see someone being victimized.
As a result of these serious and ongoing incidents, students staged protests at North Thurston schools to demand that action be taken. While the administrators agreed to the demands, students and their adviser say that meaningful action has yet to be taken, but that staff has retaliated against students for speaking out.
We want local students to know that the Thurston County Democrats support their efforts. We call on locally elected school board members and administrative leaders to take substantial, swift and serious action to address these serious concerns, as well as cease and correct all punitive measures taken against students who are speaking out for safe schools that are free of racism and sexism.
Jeff Sowers, Olympia
End the drug war and treat addiction
In 2015, I lost my brother to a drug overdose. A toxicology report found fentanyl in his system, a synthetic opioid that I eventually learned is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine, frighteningly intensifying the opioid epidemic in America.
The nightmare of losing someone I adored lives within me each day. It’s part of a national nightmare: 90,000 overdose deaths last year. Whoever you are reading this, whatever your politics, the drug war has been a travesty and deserves to end.
The drug war began with gangs (the Mafia) monopolizing the drug trade, raising the price of substances previously purchased legally, which escalated crime (robberies and prostitution) to pay for addiction. For over 100 years, violence has controlled the flow of drugs — homicides in Mexico exceeded 30,000 last year, for instance, with cartels amassing an estimated $30 billion. For a closer examination of the drug war, I strongly recommend Johann Hari’s powerful book, “Chasing the Scream.”
This is a monumental problem, but there’s hope. Rather than spending $40 billion a year to lock away users, more countries are ending their drug wars — providing access to drugs that are pure and regulated, safe places to use, detox centers, and extensive resources for prevention and treatment.
My brother wasn’t a criminal. He was the most caring, charming and kindhearted person you’d ever hope to meet. But he needed help. He didn’t need a war waged against him, he was already battling his own war with addiction.
Robert Cahill, Olympia
Olympia Regional Airport under consideration for expansion
Currently, the Washington state legislature has a statewide airport committee — Commercial Aviation Coordinating Commission — that is charged with recommending a location for a new commercial airport by February 15, 2023, as well as expanding capacity elsewhere. There are cargo airports, passenger airports; and they all come with huge congestion issues, warehouses, trucking, parking, traffic.
On one of these lists of possible airports is the airport in Tumwater.
The flight path for this airport would go directly over Olympia, Lacey and Tumwater. The flight path will be emitting particulate matter, emitting carbon monoxide and other noxious gases, that will effect the health of everyone in Olympia, Lacey, and Tumwater.
Our relatives, who had a home near Seattle-Tacoma International Airport from the 1940s, had awful health issues from the airport emissions, as did their neighbors. We can put an airport out of town, so that the flight path does not go over urban areas. Or we can build high-speed trains or rail lines. But we do not need an airport in Tumwater.
Please let your legislator know this. Please be mindful of the health impacts, because once you lose your health, it is very difficult to try to regain it.
Lee Riner, Olympia