To the editor,
The United States of America as we know it is only 240 years old, still a baby when compared to most other countries.
Immigrants and people of different ideologies are the foundation of America. In being a home to everyone from everywhere, we will always be a laboratory for doing things differently — continually experimenting, learning, and evolving. But there are some who don’t want to experiment anymore. In fact, they want to close the laboratory down altogether.
President-elect Donald Trump ran a divisive campaign that was vulgar and openly hostile to immigrants, people of color, and non-Christians, among others. We questioned regularly if the president-elect could rise to the dignity embodied in the Office of the President.
While many of us are dismayed by the outcome of the election, the fact is some of our neighbors voted for Trump. Many were very likely Barack Obama voters in 2008 and 2012 whose economic anxiety led them to vote against Hillary Clinton and what they felt was a tone-deaf and broken status quo.
Still, we cannot ignore that Trump’s campaign kicked up a whole bunch of ugly, hateful silt in our country that we now must face together. To that end, we should attempt to engage and understand rather than un-friend and condemn each other.
New York City is one of the most diverse cities in the nation. We all share the desire to live peacefully and ensure a better life for ourselves and our families. But we cannot accomplish this if we aren’t listening to each other and working together to understand just a little bit better what it’s like to walk in our neighbor’s shoes.
America’s story and spirit has always been about turning to face the biggest, most seemingly insurmountable problems. Yes, sometimes we’ve been the bully, but more often than not, our country has been the kid who challenges the bully in the middle of the schoolyard for all to see. Now we are faced with doing so inside our own borders.
All across this country, and here in our own city and neighborhood, immigrants (including citizens), people of color, women, Muslims, Jews, and members of the LGBTQ community are anxious — they have very real concerns about what policies will be enacted over the next four years. Many are very aware — and some have been the targets — of increasing bias incidents over the past year. And many people who are not obvious targets for policy changes or bias incidents are equally apprehensive.
Diverse cultures and perspectives are the very backbone of our country. Living next door to someone from a different background than our own makes the “whole” that we share so much greater than each of our parts here in Bay Ridge, in Brooklyn, in New York City, and in America. Sure, these changes have presented occasional challenges but nothing that we can’t address and emerge stronger from.
Now more than ever, all of us, each in our own way, must take action. We can no longer sit silent or assume. We need to talk to friends, convert strangers into neighbors, attend a rally, donate to a worthy group, join a political or a civic action group, volunteer to coach little league, help clean-up a park or playground, adopt a meaningful cause, sign up to be an advocate — do something outside our comfort zones and go out of our way to engage with people from different backgrounds than our own.
Most importantly, we can’t allow ourselves to be paralyzed by trying to make our activism perfect or waiting for just the right opportunity to jump in. As long as whatever we do is done with passion and purpose, that’s all that matters.
To that end, lifelong New Yorkers should feel more responsible than ever to look out for their neighbors, to defend and protect them, because we are all in this together. Let’s work to show our neighbors and the world that our neighborhood does not stand for division and that Brooklyn, New York City, and America will never stop fighting for a country that is inclusive and accountable.
The soul of America is on trial here.
It’s time for us all to stand up and testify.Vincent Gentile
Justin Brannan
Vincent Gentile is Councilman for Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights. Justin Brannan is president of the Bay Ridge Democrats
Hoovervilles
To the editor,
Anyone who believes Trump is going to make America great again is dreaming. Under Trump, most of us are going to be living in a cardboard box with the new middle class being the people in these boxes with can openers.David Raisman
Bay Ridge
Paying for it
To the editor,
The MTA is now, after Election Day of course, presenting a new round of fare and toll hikes on the backs of commuters. They state that the MTA must pay for infrastructure repairs, salaries and the Second Avenue subway — whoa, pardner! Pay for the Second Avenue subway?
I thought that was what the many costly bond issues were supposed to do. I might add that we are still, to this day, paying for those bonds in increased taxes, which were passed by voters years ago.
Gen. Patton had a favorite saying that he didn’t like paying for the same real estate twice. So, before the rancorous and relatively useless public hearings, maybe a politician or two with guts will question these payments to the Second Ave Subway, before they unanimously rubber-stamp their approvals for the hikes!
Robert W. Lobenstein
Marine Park
Bring back Stan
To the editor,
For weeks I’ve been waiting for the return of Stan Gershbein, thinking he was on vacation.
Now I see you gave him the heave-ho along with Shavanna Abruzzo, the two best you ever had. They are gone because they wrote what the people liked; not the media. Two Trump believers. Remaining now are the two easy-going female columnists and lunkhead Tom. “Sound off to the Editor” column now seems way behind the police precincts page plus your ads.Bill Glassman
Sheepshead Bay
Trump Glowers
To the editor,
I have been following presidential elections since 1960 and I know that campaigns can get rough. However, I have never seen a presidential candidate make more vicious personal attacks against multiple individuals like John McCain, Marco Rubio, Families of Medal of Honor recipients, etc. However, he will apparently be declared winner by the electoral college, which is the method that the Constitution mandates. Hillary Clinton won the majority of the popular vote by a wide margin.
I am appalled by demonstrations against Trump. He should be given the opportunity to pick his cabinet and other appointees. If you oppose an appointee, fight that choice. A president has the right to pick his people. I am equally appalled by Mr. Trump expressing his displeasure with what the cast of Hamilton did but not using the same vehicle to denounce the individuals who shouted “Heil Trump” while giving a Nazi salute.Alan Podhaizer
Brighton Beach
REACH out, Chuck
To the editor,
What if you could save the lives of the world’s most vulnerable women and children in the time it takes to like a Facebook post? By cosponsoring the Reach Every Mother and Child (REACH) Act, Chuck Schumer has the unique opportunity to do just that. REACH is a bipartisan bill that requires no new funding, and is a blueprint for ending preventable maternal, newborn, and child deaths by 2035.
In 2016, we still have 5.9 million children dying every year before their 5th birthday. Every day, we have 830 mothers losing their lives while giving birth. We need a strong restructuring of USAID maternal and child survival programs, including increased accountability and transparency. Passing the REACH Act will ensure that U.S. global health funding reaches the mothers and children who are most vulnerable, but Chuck Schumer still has not signed on. All cosponsoring this bill takes is the click of a button.
Even in times of uncertainty, we cannot pass up any opportunity to save lives. We need Sen. Schumer to be a champion for the REACH Act by not only signing on to the bill, but by asking Chairman Ed Royce to bring it up for a vote. With only two co-sponsors short of a simple majority in the House, the bill will come up for a vote in short order and we need Schumer to be a strong advocate.
So Sen. Schumer: Make New York proud. Sign on to the REACH Act now, to ensure that this lame-duck Congress capitalizes on the opportunity to save the lives of mothers and children.Jae-Hee Honey
Prospect Heights
