Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. Freedom of speech is everyone's right. I fully support these truths. What agitates me and many of my friends and family is when people continue to broadcast their opinions on issues but offer no solutions.
When I read the opinion pieces about Mr. Mapp, I was so ecstatic that there was finally praise for a man due to his accomplishments. He did so much for equality for our fair city. No matter what a person's mixture of ethnicity and cultures, he helped to elevate everyone's rights. He is a true hero. The fact that he is a black man is just a small part of what made him who he is. He took a stand and grabbed every opportunity he could do to exceed and succeed.
It's unfortunate that some people continue to use their opinions on here and elsewhere to fan the flames of hatred and continue to blame others for problems. If the people that are in trouble with the law, in prison, don't support their children, etc. (The list is endless.) The excuses and blaming others for being targeted due to their race is ridiculous. There are people of all races that make terrible choices and have to deal with the consequences of those decisions.
Take responsibility for your actions or lack of actions. Take advantage of the opportunities that are all around you and stop whining that it's someone else's fault that you have no drive, ambition, goals or achievements. Go out and get some, act right. Make your life better yourself. Race, creed, ethnicity, everything is not an excuse or a handicap for all your problems and problems in the community.
Richard Smith
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I'm glad I live in a country where people can disagree and argue about the history of our country and not be arrested or harassed.
I've spent a bit of time in a country where that isn't the case.
I hope we always stay "on the lookout" for the things that threaten the freedom of "the whole" and work to preserve the freedom of the individual. And that means that we must be able to let people do things we don't agree with.
Surely the wise, gentle people in our great nation can pause to clear the way for change that honors our humanity while preserving our history. Recognizing that we have both the awful and glorious is part of doing that.
May we choose love and joy and peace and patience and kindness and goodness and faithfulness and gentleness and self-control.
When we use our personal freedom in pride and challenge another with aggression and envy, we all lose.
We should be careful to reevaluate why we stand our ground in the social winds and storms while the world around us changes, less we allow our feet to become fossil of the land instead of rising to be part of the ever-changing landscape.
One thing is certain, if we let our pride become more important than our existing unified freedom, we will chip away from the progress that we have made.
Every raised-back stubborn argument based on the unbridled temper of infringement and entitlement will rob us from the honor of whatever privilege that shed blood affords us today.
Steve King
Ringgold