Are Dems really the party of working class?
The American public is often told that immigration and the North American Free Trade Agreement benefit Mexicans and Americans, but the AJC article “In Mexico, $2-an-hour workers make $40K SUVs,” Oct. 6, shows that this not the case in the automobile industry. Workers in Mexico are subject to blatantly illegal contracts written by bogus unions with close ties to elite political parties. Mexican workers are exploited, earning even less than their counterparts in China, and their exploitation in turn puts pressure on U.S. wages.
One would think that the Democratic Party would rise to protect workers from such exploitation, but lo and behold it is actually President Trump who is making the case for workers. Maybe if the alleged party of the downtrodden would do more for workers (and invest less in waging war in the Middle East) Democratic candidates would fare better in national elections.
HANS KLEIN, ATLANTA
NFL protests a lazy way to get attention
I thought “Do white NFL fans see players as mascots?” by Gracie Bonds Staples on Oct. 8 was one of the more ridiculous accusations made about bigotry. But it was completely eclipsed by an assistant professor of philosophy at Emory declaring, “Many white fans are happy to root for black men on the field, but unwilling to accept them as full human beings.” Did she have to go back to the Civil War era to come up with such an outrageous and loathsome statement? The NFL protests are a lazy way of getting attention. How serious is a protester who is being paid millions of dollars to be on that field, who doesn’t have to spend an extra cent or minute of his time, nor move even a yard or hold a sign? Yes, we have freedom of speech, but there is a time and place for everything.
JUDITH MCCARTHY, ATLANTA
Columbus’ fake history goes beyond statues
In 1492, Columbus might have sailed the ocean blue, however, he never landed in the United States of America. To borrow Malcom Gladwell’s podcast name, it appears there’s some revisionist history that needs to be told. Evidently, Columbus was not so kind to the indigenous people. Now that Pandora’s Box has been opened, we have a real problem. It goes well beyond statues, holidays and circles. There are cities, universities, and many institutions named after this known mass killer.
Not to worry, Chris. Over time, you will have a lot of company. In schools throughout the country, we still play make-believe with the history of Native Americans and the Vietnam War. Of course, there’s much more history that should be re-written, but those are two whoppers.
KEN LEEBOW, MARIETTA
Congress should restore gun research funding
Over and over again during this year’s session of the Georgia Legislature, we heard proponents of “Campus Carry” repeat that guns were essential to student safety on campuses.
“Good people” had to protect themselves from “evil ones” and it was their constitutional right to arm themselves.A majority of the Legislature agreed and so did the governor as they had previously for the “Guns Everywhere” bill. The implication of course is that our public safety structure is inadequate. The horror of the Las Vegas slaughter raises the question of what protection the concertgoers had — even if they had armed themselves. The Las Vegas situation throws into stark relief just how complicated the gun issue is. Certainly no one step or action can “solve” the “521 mass shootings in 477 days” (New York Times) in the U.S. as of Oct. 3. However, Dr. Mark Rosenberg (“Science offers a pathway …”) offers a key in his op-ed piece on Oct. 8. When Congress passes the bill banning that inexpensive device the Las Vegas shooter used on his arsenal of semi-automatics, Congress can add authorization “to restore funding for research to find interventions that both reduce gun violence and protect gun rights.” It is the least Congress can do.
ALIDA C. SILVERMAN, ATLANTA
