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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (June 9, 2020)
A6 THE ASTORIAN • TuESdAy, JuNE 9, 2020 OPINION editor@dailyastorian.com KARI BORGEN Publisher DERRICK DePLEDGE Editor Founded in 1873 JEREMY FELDMAN Circulation Manager JOHN D. BRUIJN Production Manager CARL EARL Systems Manager GUEST COLUMN Volunteer to create change Considere ser Voluntario para Generar Cambio I n 1956 — my father still tells the story today — a team of baseball players from his hometown in Cana- nea, Sonora, Mexico, won the regional championship. My father was about 12, as he recalls, and Los Mineros de Cananea were invited to play baseball at the Arizo- na-Texas League Invitational in El Paso, Texas. There were three Afro Latino play- ers from Cuba on the team. They were in for the adventure of play- ing in their neighbor- ing country against other baseball teams with peo- ple from many different backgrounds. ROCÍO To their surprise, they LIZÁRRAGA saw a sign outside of the SIMMONS restaurant where they were all supposed to eat that read, “No dogs, No blacks, No Mexicans.” They had never experienced that level of racism anywhere else. They did play, but ate their food on the bus and returned home with a sense of bewilderment. This is not the 1950s and after almost 70 years, one would like to think that we have moved far away from those racial sentiments. However, the abhorrent event of the killing of George Floyd by a police officer in Minnesota shows us that we haven’t moved very far. “It could be my father, my brother, my uncle, my cousin, my friend,” said Victoria Sloan, 27, of Brooklyn, in the New York Times on June 2, 2020. “It makes me angry.” These are the words of one of thou- sands of protesters who have taken to the streets as a result of systematic racism. As we say in Mexico, this tragedy was just the drop that overflowed the cup. This was one more of too many police brutalities applied disproportionately to people of color. In addition, with COVID-19, there is a disproportionate burden of illness and death among racial and ethnic minority groups. This suggests how much more E Hailey Hoffman/The Astorian Cristal García-Álvarez, 8, performs with Mi Cultura, a Latino folkloric dance group, at the Día de los muertos celebration last year at the Barbey Maritime Center. LOWER COLUMBIA HISPANIC COUNCIL For more information on volunteer op- portunities with the Lower Columbia Hispanic Council, call 503-325-4547 or email at info@lchispaniccouncil.org vulnerable people of color are during national emergencies. We need systemic change that will not come from the federal level. It has to start community by community. The Lower Columbia Hispanic Coun- cil would like to stand up with our Afri- can American brothers and sisters in their fight for racial equality in the Black Lives Matter movement. We invite you to join us in being part of a big tapestry of cultures woven together in one com- munity, where respect and acceptance are at the head. You can start in your own home with your own children, but also please con- sider volunteering your time with any local nonprofit organization that serves the most historically underserved in our community. The Hispanic council would welcome your time and energy in our various programs. Rocío Lizárraga Simmons is the co-chair of the board of directors of the Lower Columbia Hispanic Council. n 1956 —mi padre aún sigue contando la histo- ria — el equipo de béis- bol de su pueblo natal en Cananea, Sonora, México ganó el campeonato regional. Mi padre tenía unos 12 años, según recuerda, y Los Mineros de Cananea fueron invitados a jugar béisbol con la Liga de Arizona – Texas en El Paso, Texas. Había tres jugadores afrolati- nos de Cuba en el equipo. Estaban ansiosos por la aventura de jugar en el país vecino en contra de otros equipos con jugadores de diferentes nacionalidades. Cuál fue su sorpresa cuando vieron un letrero afuera del restaurant donde todos iban a comer que decía, “No dogs, No blacks, No Mexicans.” Nunca habían experimentado ese nivel de racimo en ningún otro lugar. Si jugaron, pero se comieron la comida en el autobús y regresaron a casa perplejos. No estamos en los años 50’s y después de casi 70 años, nos gus- taría pensar que esos sentimientos racistas ya han quedado atrás; sin embargo, el aborrecible evento de la muerte de George Floyd en manos de un agente de la policía en Minne- sota nos muestra que no hemos pro- gresado mucho. “Podría haber sido mi padre, mi hermano, mi tío, mi primo, mi amigo,” dijo Victoria Sloan, 27, de Brooklyn en el New York Times, 2 de junio. “Estoy furiosa.” Estas son las palabras de una de miles de protestantes que han salido a las calles como resultado del rac- ismo sistemático. Como decimos en México, esta tragedia fue la gota que derramó el vaso. Esta fue una mas EL CONSEJO HISPANO DEL BAJO COLUMBIA Para mas información en cuanto a oportunidades para ser voluntario en el Consejo Hispano, favor de lla- mar al 503-325-4547 o envíenos un correo a info@lchispaniccouncil.org. de tantas brutalidades que despro- porcionadamente han recibido per- sonas de color. Además, con el COVID-19 hay un desproporcionado número de enfermedad y muerte entre minorías. Esto sugiere cuan mas vulnerables son las personas de color durante emergencias nacionales. Necesitamos un cambio sistemático el cual no surgirá desde un nivel federal. Tiene que comen- zar comunidad por comunidad. El Consejo Hispano del Bajo Columbia se une con nuestros hermanos y her- manas afroamericanos en su lucha por igualdad racial en el movimiento Black Lives Matter. Lo invitamos a unirse a ser parte de este gran tapiz de culturas tejido en una sola comunidad, donde el respeto y la aceptación están a la cabeza. Puede comenzar en su propio hogar con sus propios hijos, pero también considere ser volun- tario con alguna organización local sin fines lucrativos que provea servi- cio a aquellos que históricamente en nuestra comunidad mas lo necesitan. El Consejo Hispano lo espera para que preste su tiempo y energía en los diferentes programas que tenemos. Rocío Lizárraga Simmons, Con- sejo Hispano del Bajo Columbia, Co-Presidente de la Mesa directiva. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR What can I do? T here have been many giants in Amer- ican history. Some examples: In 1787, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and others said, “We’ll try something different.” Government of the people, by the people and for the people. Democracy: One person, one vote. So many governments consisted of kings, queens, tyrants or despots, which sounds like a lucrative gig if you’re one of them. If not, or at least a kis- sin’ cousin, forget it. Mama always said, “Power corrupts, and absolute power absolutely corrupts.” In 1865, Abraham Lincoln had a vision that all men are created equal, resulting in his paving the way for the Constitution’s 13th Amendment. In 1868, Thomas Edison invented the voting machine. Today, in Oregon, we don’t wait in lines to vote. We just mail it in. Yee haw! Seems like all states should. It’s safe, and works. In 1850, Susan B. Anthony started the movement that 70 years later resulted in the overdue 19th Amendment, granting all women the right to vote, and changed politics for the better. In 1965, Martin Luther King Jr. and Lyndon B. Johnson fought for, and signed into law, the Voting Rights Act that outlawed voter suppression. Why would anyone want to suppress people’s votes? Beats the blank out of me. You? So, what can I do to be like, or at least honor these stars of American democ- racy? Hmm — hey! I will make sure I’m registered, informed and vote in all elec- tions. I think this will honor and preserve their legacies, and do them proud. How about you? CARL DOMINEY Astoria False patriotism A s each day goes by, and the president moves further and further away from the teachings of Jesus, at what point do believers in Christ speak out against him? While Paul encouraged Christians to respect the law and the government, it was not long after the birth of Christian- ity that believers stood up to the Roman powers, not through fighting, but by revealing a better way to live, and some- times, to die. When President Donald Trump incited violence in his tweet on May 28, he crossed a line for me as a Christian. For the moment, set aside his ignorance, self- ishness, lying, racism, sexual harass- ment, greed, narcissism and pride. When he called for the shooting of Americans — even though some were looting — in Minnesota, at some point, people of con- science have to speak out against him. We have to do something. David Brooks, a conservative author and columnist, wrote that we are a lead- erless country. I agree, and it looks like it when you hear and see what is going on. Ultimately, we have a president who actively desires to divide and bring down our country. My wife and I were talking about the irony of the president’s current motto, “Keep America Great.” He has done more than any other president to make America a laughingstock of the world. This morning I read from Samuel Johnson, “Patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel.” I feel that this is where the church is today: Taking refuge in a false patriotism. DON ANDERSON Astoria Get ready I suggest everyone get ready for the coronavirus to haunt and terrorize us for some time to come. Viruses and plagues just don’t magically disappear, as our reckless president contends. Smallpox was finally controlled in the early 1980s. What accomplished this, wishful thinking? No, science did, which our president disrespectfully ignores. Why does he need to listen to experts in any field, when he is a stable genius who doesn’t need all those pesky facts that prove him wrong on a daily basis? He has consistently delayed follow- ing the advice of learned profession- als, which has resulted in tens of thou- sands of needless deaths. He still hasn’t assisted this country in developing a cohesive strategy in developing a coor- dinated testing program that would help us identify the infected, and take the nec- essary action to contain the spread on a national level. Every epidemiologist knows the importance of this, and yet President Donald Trump continues to ignore and shame his countrymen into blindly run- ning back into an environment where purveyors of death could be anywhere, spreading the virus unchecked. Testing continues to be based on symptoms, which allows the infected to spread it for weeks before being iden- tified and quarantined, if ever. This is due to the president’s selfish attempt to avoid taking responsibility for the most LETTERS WELCOME Letters should be exclusive to The Astorian. Letters should be fewer than 250 words and must include the writ- er’s name, address and phone num- ber. You will be contacted to confirm authorship. All letters are subject to editing for space, grammar and factual accuracy. Only two letters per writer are allowed each month. Letters writ- ten in response to other letter writ- ers should address the issue at hand, and, rather than mentioning the writer needless and monstrous calamity in our history. He consistently sends out conflicting messages, which create confusion, which leads to ineffectual action. Get over it? No, get ready for an even greater disaster. BRENTON KAHLE Astoria Wear your mask D o you want to know why Oregon’s COVID-19 deaths are waning dra- matically? Why we are not following in a version of Italy’s or New York’s death rates? It is Gov. Kate Brown’s March 23 by name, should refer to the head- line and date the letter was published. Discourse should be civil and people should be referred to in a respectful manner. Letters in poor taste will not be printed. Send via email to editor@ dailyastorian.com, online at bit.ly/asto- rianletters, in person at 949 Exchange St. in Astoria or 1555 North Roos- evelt in Seaside, or mail to Letters to the Editor, P.O. Box 210, Astoria, OR., 97103. order to stay home. Responding to the evolving scientific consensus, she set out a plan to keep us safe. Thank you, Gov. Brown. Speaking personally, I am happy not to have died. The science of COVID-19 infectivity also recognizes the importance of every- one wearing masks each time we leave our family bubble to interact with our communities. Your mask does not protect you; it protects all those you speak with. So, as our economy reopens and we resume contact with each other, I need for you to wear your mask. Thank you. JULIE CHAPMAN Physician assistant, retired Portland
