9/9 Letters: Commissioners must stand up for public school funding

Each WCPSS graduating class adds more than $86 million to local property values. That figure is huge. Few like higher taxes, but I also don’t want to see our economy and housing market sink.

Across the country, few cities like Raleigh have such a unified and strong school system. Our legislature and federal government are working to undermine that, with increasing funding for charter schools and private schools. This will hurt our children and our community in the long run. We need our commissioners to stand up for public schools. The current budget is not enough. Please help fund our schools.

Come together

Remember a few weeks back when everyone seemed to hate someone over a bunch of Civil War statues? Back before the worst of human nature was upstaged by the worst of Mother Nature. Before Harvey came along and brought out the best in people?

Remember seeing image after image and hearing story after story of person after person risking their lives to save the lives of strangers from rampaging flood waters in Texas? When no one cared if the person to whom they were casting a lifeline was a Jew or a gentile, a Christian or a Muslim ... and it didn’t matter that the next person to wear clothing being donated might be of different race, creed, color or national origin ... and no one gave a second thought as to whether the person they were pulling into a lifeboat was “undocumented”?

Why does someone have to pluck others from the roofs of their about-to-be-washed-away cars before they accept that differences don’t matter? Why can’t people be more civil and come to that same conclusion over a cup of coffee?

Remember and learn

After the upsetting events in Charlottesville, I feel compelled to express my views. In 1950, at 15, I immigrated to the United States from Brussels, Belgium. In 1962 I proudly became an American citizen. Having grown up under the oppression of Nazi invaders, and remembering how grateful we were to be liberated by the Americans, it was deeply painful for me to see Nazi flags flying next to American flags in Charlottesville. I cannot believe that those brandishing swastikas fully understand what Nazism means.

I have lived happily in the South for many years with my Southern husband, children and grandchildren, and I am well aware of our history. It should not be forgotten – but we should learn from it. If Confederate statues are to be preserved, keep them in museums as historical artifacts and reminders of what we do not want to repeat. I hope people will decide to spend more time doing what they can to spread mutual understanding and respect in a civilized manner. This is a great country, and I hope we can all work to keep that way.

This story was originally published September 8, 2017 at 6:00 PM with the headline "9/9 Letters: Commissioners must stand up for public school funding."