Confederate flag and terrorism: Letters to the editor, March 5, 2021

Confederate flag is simply terrorism

 I’ve lived in Fresno proper for almost 10 years. I’m a Californian. I’ve lived all over this state. But I have never lived in an area that openly allows and accepts blatant displays of bigotry. I will never forget the first time I visited our sister city Clovis. I will never forget seeing this pick-up truck brandishing a large (not small) Confederate flag. I was appalled. I was confused.

Let’s start with why I was confused. I didn’t know that the Central Valley was originally founded by Southerners with Southern racist hospitality. Now for the appalled: If there is one symbol, other than the noose, that represents the enslavement of a people, it’s the Confederate flag. There are no two ways about it. Pure and simple.

What I learned that day was that people in our community “allowed” this type of terrorism to occur and exist. And it is terrorism, folks. Pure and simple. Please don’t preach to me about your “freedom of speech.” This is a place bullies use to rationalize their bad behavior.

I’ll say this here and now: Guess what? You lost the war!

Now get over it.

Why change Squaw Valley name?

Regarding your article on changing the name of Squaw Valley, I always thought the word “squaw” simply meant a North American Indian woman. The Webster’s New World dictionary (1994 edition) confirms that meaning, but also says, “...this term is now considered offensive.” My guess is that 99% of the population does not know it is offensive. 

Unfortunately, it has become vogue for minority groups to claim they are offended by some sports team name or school mascot or street name or statue or whatever. I wonder if all the references to the 1960 Squaw Valley Winter Olympics will now have to be stricken from the records. So sad. So silly.

Don’t let cops self-investigate

On the weekend of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office showed us once again why we need police accountability reform. Apparently having a light out on your car makes you such a dangerous criminal that an officer can reasonably assume you may endanger his life while he checks your license plate.

For some bewildering reason instead of a neutral third party investigating such incidents, the sheriff’s office investigates, which is a completely absurd policy. Maybe the prosecution and the defense shouldn’t be on the same team. Maybe if these officers faced some kind of consequences when these situations occur, instead of being let off the hook, there would be fewer of them, right?

Mandatory body cameras are a good start, but as long as our police forces are allowed to investigate themselves, and when the leaders of our police forces such as (Margaret) Mims claim they just don’t have the budget to be held accountable, it’s clear that they are trying to dodge accountability, not enforce it.

Freedom to decide when to die

Ever since I can remember when I was little, I always supported the idea of people been able to decide when to end their life when facing a lot of pain. It is obviously more complicated than what I used to think, but after having some recent experience I am still leaning toward that idea.

Somewhere by the last quarter of 2019 my dad got diagnosed cancer, stage 4, and was told there was not much to do but wait to the end, which would occur in about a year. My dad didn’t want to give up and tried the therapy the doctors suggested, but nothing changed. At the end and through his last year of life he experienced a lot of pain, even after taking high doses of morphine. I remember a couple weeks before he passed away begging for help to end the pain.

My question is, why can’t we help people avoid this kind of pain? Why can’t people decide when is enough?

I believe it should be a decision everyone can make (if they are conscious) and be part of our freedom.

This story was originally published March 5, 2021 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Confederate flag and terrorism: Letters to the editor, March 5, 2021."