Wednesday’s Letters to the Editor

Questions about SAY

EDITOR: Oscar Chavez, president and CEO of Community Foundation Sonoma County, says “there’s a lesson to be learned” regarding the failure of Social Advocates for Youth (“ ‘We have devastating news,’ ” Feb. 27). Three lessons that need to be learned are, first, how did SAY manage to get through 53 years only to come to this? Second, how could it possibly have happened so quickly? And third, where were the directors when they were needed? How is it that they can apparently walk away with “no comment”? There’s a lot more that needs to be exposed, explained and understood, not the least of which is what happened to the money?

ED SHOOP

Sonoma

Commission’s silence

EDITOR: I am writing to express my deep concern and outrage that on Feb. 22 the Sonoma County Commission on Human Rights adopted a resolution on the situation in Israel and Gaza and didn’t mention sexual violence committed by Hamas during the Oct. 7 attack, though multiple members of the community spoke about it during two recent commission meetings.

There is strong evidence that Hamas terrorists systematically raped, tortured and mutilated hundreds of Israeli civilians and several American citizens, especially women and girls, as part of their brutal assault. These horrific crimes have been documented by eyewitnesses, first responders and medical professionals. They constitute grave violations of international law and human rights law and amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.

By omitting any reference to these atrocities, the commission sends a dangerous message that such violence is acceptable or tolerable if the Jewish population is targeted. This undermines the credibility and integrity of the commission and contradicts its mission to promote better relations among all people in Sonoma County.

LEV LUVISHIS

Santa Rosa

An upbeat story

EDITOR: Many thanks for the wonderful front-page story about the Rancho Cotate High School Unity Week heritage performances (“School’s cultures shine,” Feb. 26). It was a great pleasure to read about something so positive and upbeat first thing in the morning. Perhaps someday a similar event or exhibition of some kind could feature students with disabilities; so many wonderful people often overlooked and misunderstood.

BILL CHAYES

Petaluma

Assault on women’s rights

EDITOR: Charles M. Blow’s Feb. 23 column is a red alert to reelect Joe Biden (“Embryo ruling shows our slide toward theocracy”). Not convinced? Read Politico’s article on the religious right’s plans “to infuse ‘Christian nationalism’ ” in Donald Trump’s possible reelection to the presidency. The Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos are children, causing confusion and chaos in the field of in vitro fertilization medicine, which helps people have children. Blow’s article references an expert who says, “There is no more pro-life medical treatment … than in vitro fertilization.”

The chief justice in the Alabama case makes clear in his concurring opinion that before birth “all human beings bear the image of God, and their lives cannot be destroyed without effacing his glory.” This court and those who support Christian nationalism are not ruled by the Constitution but by religious zealotry.

Donald Trump makes it crystal clear that he will pander to the Christian nationalists to keep their votes. These zealots’ agenda is unmistakable. Hold your nose if you must, but vote for Biden and his party to stop the continued assault on women’s rights.

DONNA GAETANO

Santa Rosa

Credit where it’s due

EDITOR: It’s time to cut through the noise and tell the truth about immigration: Our economy and community is stronger because of it. Some leaders would have us think it’s a zero-sum game when our country takes in immigrants, but that’s not true at all.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates the U.S. economy will grow by an extra $7 trillion over the next 10 years thanks to immigrants. But we don’t have to wait for the future to see how immigrants are strengthening the economy. In 2021, immigrants paid $524.7 billion in taxes. That’s money that helps fuel our nation’s K-12 schools, Medicaid and Social Security. Immigrants help support our communities as consumers and taxpayers.

Don’t believe it? Even Donald Trump’s appointed Federal Reserve chair, Jerome Powell, recognized the massive contributions immigrants make in a recent national interview, saying, “A big part of the story of the labor market coming back into better balance is immigration returning to levels that were more typical of the pre-pandemic era.”

So let’s give credit where credit is due, stop the anti-immigrant rhetoric and end the zero-sum mindset. Immigration truly is essential for our economic growth and our communities’ prosperity.

LAURA ELIZARES

Kelseyville

You can send letters to the editor to letters@pressdemocrat.com.