To The Editor:
I write this letter in response to the letter by Allison Mullen published August 5, 2016. Mullen seems to have the belief that we of the older generation are the cause of the problems of the black citizens of the United States. We are not the cause of the problems.
My introduction to segregation was while I was stationed at Keesler Field, Mississippi in 1945 with the United States Army Air Corps. I was riding a bus from Biloxi to Pascagoula. The bus was full. I was in uniform. A pregnant black lady got on. I got up and offered her my seat. She smiled, but that was all there was time for. The driver slammed on the brakes and came back and told me in no uncertain terms that blacks had to go to the back of the bus and pointed to a white line on the floor. And that was my introduction to segregation.
I’m sure you were taught about the “Solid South,” the political block of segregated states that voted “solidly” Democratic.
The United States military was segregated until President Truman, a Democrat, ordered it ended.
A black soldier and I became friends while washing C-54 aircraft cowling at Hickam Field, Hawaii in the fall of 1946. Somehow we processed for separation at the same time but at different locations at Fort Dix, N.J. I last saw him at the train station. I walked over to him, shook his hand, and we wished each other good luck. He got a train for Trenton and I got a train to New York City.
So I do not believe it is my generation that is causing the problems between races today.
When was the last time you read a story about a 90 year old shooting up a night club? Or anything else? I think all the shooters are younger people.
The race problem has escalated since President Obama has been in office.
True, the youth of America should not be subjected to so much violence and hate. But do not blame me or my generation. Look to your generation.
How do we teach you tolerance and equality? You can’t possibly believe government can do it.
Who is involved in the rallies, protest, and violence? Not my generation.
What is meant by “like passing amendments or speeches to the Senate? Who should be making speeches about what?
I suggest people read a book I read around 1958. See if the theme can relate to what is happening in the United States today. It is “Atlas Shrugged” by Ayn Rand.
Vincent Devlin Msgt Retired,
United States Air Force. 1
72 Madden Road, Stephentown. [/private]
photonicgirl@hotmail.com says
August 26, 2016 at 8:14 amThank you Msg Vincent Devlin. My father was a Master Sergeant and he would have said exactly what you said. My mother was born in 1917 in Arkansas. Poor, white, uneducated, and also shunned by many in her later years, due to her poverty. Both my parents worked incredibly hard to provide for us. They didn’t have time nor did they have inclination to go to protests, rallies, or other political events. They didn’t have any desire to teach us that blacks and white were different. After all, my dad served multiple tours in Vietnam and Korea with soldiers such as yourself. On the firing line, all men are equal.
I hope our young folks read what you wrote. Thank you again, sir, for speaking out.
Jules Harrell
Cherry Plain, NY