The very pathetic, almost all-white Republican National Convention in Cleveland truly represents the last hurrah for disaffected white people ("Brian Rice acquittal wins applause at Republican National Convention," July 19). Their white bread world has evolved into a whole wheat or rye bread world, and these poor old souls are hanging on for dear life. They have identified as white rather than acknowledging their humanity.
Many of these people have been raised in families where racial hatred is taken for granted. They recognize that the era of white privilege is just about over and they fear that they will be unable to adapt and will be left behind. They wake up angry and go to bed angry. They are causing great harm to our democracy but they really don't care as it is all about them.
They claim to be patriots but they feel burdened by the principles of our democracy and they never really accepted the idea that all men are created equal and have the same rights. They claim that they are concerned about the futures of their children but many of these children have rejected the hateful values of their parents.
What are we as a society to do about these white people who feel left behind and as a result are causing immense damage to their country? The easy answer is to just wait them out. They will be dying off and their gospel of exclusion will be replaced by the gospel of inclusion. We can't wait for our religious leaders to come forward as so many of them are asleep at the switch. One thing we can do is vote their leaders out of office. We need to send a strong message that we as a people will not be ruled by hate.
The sad spectacle in Cleveland that we are seeing should be enough to motivate us to really get out the vote. The future of our country is at stake. Our main goal should be to get as many people as possible to vote in November. We have seen the opposition and we realize how much harm they can cause. We are truly motivated.
Edward McCarey McDonnell, Baltimore