Woodson's legacy
After reading "A little history about the month . . ." written by R. B. Jones and ". . . what to do in commemoration" by Samuel L. Banks in The Evening Sun (Feb. 1), I had to write this letter to express my sincere appreciation to those obviously intelligent, insightful and caring African-American men. They project the positive voice that Carter G. Woodson would be proud of.
Dr. Woodson's mission for the Association for the Study of Afro-American Life and History (which he founded in 1911) was threefold:
Serious, systematic and scientific study of Afro-American life and history; dissemination of the history and life of black people through scholarly publications, and development of accurate bibliographic and instructional materials pertaining to black life and history.
Mr. Jones should not be discouraged because some people in their 20s do know whence they've come. He should continue to carry out Dr. Woodson's mission by keeping our history alive.
Also, I encourage Dr. Banks to continue his efforts to positively influence students of the Baltimore City public school system.
As a young African-American woman, I truly appreciate the passage of history from the 1960s revolutionary generation, and I will continue to grow.
I promise to pass our rich history and culture on to my younger brothers and sisters.
$Ellyne Mary Brown, D.V.M.
Baltimore
Pet overpopulation
Baltimore City animal control has eliminated the 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. shift.
This means that animals injured during that time period are not picked up. They lie there, suffer and sometimes die.
Also, during this time period no one is at the shelter. Should a fire or burglary occur, many animals could be hurt or die. Can Baltimore City allow this to happen?
Even through money is tight there must be a way to end this inhumane treatment of animals. Animals are roaming the streets at night because of people's irresponsibility in letting them breed and not keeping them in a safe and caring environment.
Not too long ago Baltimore City Health Department officials admitted dragging their feet in removing five neglected horses from an unlicensed stable on Castle Street that resulted in the death of two horses from cold and starvation.
A group of concerned citizens who are working with the city on this issue has drafted a breeding ordinance bill that would encourage responsible pet ownership by charging higher license fees for animals that are not altered. This type of bill is in effect in many cities and has helped to reduce pet overpopulation.
Alley Animals Inc.'s spay-neuter program financially subsidizes pet owners who care about their pets but cannot afford to get them spayed or neutered.
Over 80 percent of the people we subsidize are Baltimore City residents.
Sylvia Block
Randallstown
The writer is volunteer director of Alley Animal Inc.'s spay-neuter program.
Beach it
I would like to pass along some ideas about saving the U.S.F. Constellation.
My impression is that efforts to extract repair money from the U.S. Navy are based on the fact that this is a floating vessel.
However, is keeping it in the water the safest and cheapest long-term approach to the salvation of this ship?
Why not beach the vessel at the edge of the Inner Harbor? Out of water, ship worms, ice and some forms of rot would not bother it. A hole in the hull wouldn't sink it.
Steel or concrete supports could be hidden within it to make sure the thundering herds of tourists were safe while on board.
Years ago, I visited Mystic Seaport in Connecticut. Some of its ships, notably one large whaler about the size of the U.S.F. Constellation, were actually sitting on a bed at the water's edge. You approached it from a pier across a gangplank just as you would a floating ship.
nthony F. Lang
Catonsville
Crime and guns
Robert L. Totten's view that recent lenient sentences and weak guidelines set by the Maryland Sentencing Guidelines Advisory Board are sending the wrong message to criminals was right on target (Forum, Feb. 13).
I also applaud the National Rifle Association's efforts to toughen our criminal justice system through its Crime Strike program.
However, I differ with Mr. Totten and the NRA on their hands-off approach to gun control. This country's epidemic of gun violence needs to be attacked on both fronts: Gun control and crime control go hand in hand.
The following gun control measures merit support:
* The federal assault weapons ban. These weapons have little sporting use and are designed to kill people. There are plenty of guns available to law-abiding citizens for defense. The list of handguns legally available in Maryland runs to 30 pages.
* The Brady Bill and other types of background checks as a requirement for purchasing weapons.
* Efforts to tighten rules governing sales at gun shows.
* The STAR (Straight Talk About Risks) gun violence prevention curriculum. This program teaches children how to resist peer pressure to use a gun, the consequences of gun use and how to resolve conflicts by other means.
These types of preventive gun control measures are an essential part of the effort to curb gun violence.
Fred Davis
Pasadena
Let's get rid of us-vs.-them mentality
People live in Baltimore for two reasons: commitment or resignation.
The committed are those who believe in the city and want it to thrive. The resigned feel stuck. They're here because they have to be.
Both groups long for a reduction in crime, schools that succeed and the diminution of poverty. The Evening Sun's recent article on the decline of Baltimore's population is evidence of this reality.
The resigned could become committed if the poverty, crime and poor schools were reduced substantially. Moreover, those who flocked to the suburbs (or never even considered an urban lifestyle) might be encouraged to experience the wonders of city life if these problems subsided.
The bright side of city life is its history, culture, diversity, liveliness and beautiful parks.
City life is convenient, too. You can walk, catch a bus or hail a cab anywhere. A snow storm does not mean we're out of milk -- we justput on our boots and walk to the corner store.
Marylanders should believe in their cities. We should invest and share in city life. Unity of purpose would restore a valuable lifestyle, add new vitality to the city and conserve precious natural resources that are slowly giving way to development. Let's get rid of the us-versus-them mentality. As the cities thrive, Maryland thrives.
#Lindsay Scholttman Waite
Baltimore
Expendable lives
Concerning the Delaware father who killed his three children and then himself in North Carolina, the local police chief, James Gradeless, commented, "It's an American story. It bothers all of our consciences because somewhere, some place, society has failed to prevent this kind of thing from happening" (news article, Feb. 21).
While it's fruitless to blame society for every individual problem, in this instance Chief Gradeless has a point: If I had the inclination to do the research, I think I'd find a dramatic increase in infanticide over the past 15 to 20 years.
Society has encouraged infanticide by devaluing the lives of children through its acceptance of abortion. If a baby is inconvenient, a financial burden or an emotional hardship on the mother, it's perfectly acceptable to terminate the pregnancy.
If a baby's life is expendable at the will of its parents, why are we surprised when parents take that philosophy a step further and determine that their children's lives are expendable?
First it was the expendable child inside the womb, now it's expendable children outside the womb as well. The value of their lives has become secondary to our own, and society has accepted that over time.
Now we have parents throwing their children out of windows, drowning them, shooting them and putting them in garbage cans. Why? Because somehow the life of that child has become a burden and is therefore expendable.
Yes, society is at fault here, not because we haven't found a way to prevent such behavior, but because we've encouraged such behavior ever since the day we accepted abortion -- the ending of a life as a logical, rational, legitimate way to deal with a life that is burdensome.
Beth Ullmann
Bel Air