To the Editor:
I understand, from recent letter writers to LCN, that you take a meat cleaver approach to letters whose contents you do not agree with. So much for an open press in a so called democracy. In the Dec. 25 LCN, there were several letters whose contents may reflect the views of the editor, a lengthy one in particular, that did not appear to have been the subject of much editing despite its offensive content.
I refer to the letter by Dick Halverson (“Mental Meandering – Sanctuary City Injustice” LCN, page 4). Similar attitudes such as his dominated the German nation in the rise to the Final Solution. All you would have to do is replace the word “immigrant” with the word “Jew” and you would have the same intent.
I grew up in Maine in the ’30s. My family is Franco American and I am proud of it. I grew up speaking French at home, my first language. We Franco Americans were the target of the Ku Klux Klan during the ’20s and ’30s here in Maine. I am very familiar with being treated as “the other”, the “undesirable”. When I testified before the Maine legislature on behalf of the Martin Luther bill, my opening comment was, “I grew up black in Maine’
During the ’80s at the height of the US funded wars in Central America, I traveled to Nicaragua and Guatemala to witness to the atrocities being carried out in our name. Here in Maine I helped lead a caravan of undocumented refugees from El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua so that we might make people aware of their plight. We were invited to meet with then Governor Joseph Brennan who, as a result, upon leaving office decided to go and see for himself the effects of US policy in Central America.
This weekend, I attended the wake of a former Catholic priest, Jim Harney, in Bangor. Jim Harney spent much of his life photographing images of children and people who live under oppressive conditions in many parts of our world many of whom are refugees.
Earlier this year, Jim walked from Boston to Warwick, R.I. with a group of undocumented refugees in order to call attention to the oppressive conditions of those who risk life and limb and the xenophobia of those like Mr. Halverson in order to come to the US. But the walk to Washington, DC was cut short by Jim’s cancers of the throat, lungs and head. Jim Harney was a man of great love and courage who spent his good life trying to educate people.
We are a nation of immigrants. We also claim to be a Christian nation. I wonder if Joseph and Mary and the infant Jesus needed green cards on their flight to Egypt?
Suzanne Hedrick, Nobleboro
(Editor’s Note: In accord with long-standing policy and industry-wide practice, all submissions to LCN are subject to editing for style and content. There is no restriction on point of view. All letters and commentaries are the opinions of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Lincoln County News, the publisher, or the editor.)
