Letters: KC readers discuss Gene Suellentrop, ‘woke supremacy’ and Buck O’Neil Bridge
Unequal justice?
It would appear that Kansas Senate Majority Leader Gene Suellentrop is the beneficiary of the opposite of discrimination. (March 18, 10A, “Suellentrop must resign now after police chase, DUI arrest”) Consider his recent release after being arrested on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol and fleeing police while driving on the wrong side of the interstate in the early morning.
Consider for a moment a regular citizen being arrested for the same. Worse, consider if he had been a Black man. Would any of the rest us have enjoyed the same leniency? I daresay our treatment likely would not have been so favorable.
Protection by virtue of a political position or system is one more outrage confronting the general population in what looks like an egregiously unequal and skewed system of justice. Corrupt? Justice is justice — more for some than others it seems.
I hope this injustice is not allowed to stand.
- Jamie Troutz, Overland Park
Same for all
It is time to stop giving special treatment to lawbreakers in government positions. If Gene Suellentrop is not held accountable, the public must not allow it. Justice is said to be blind, but we don’t even pretend to make the law fair anymore. It’s time to change this.
- Vicki Brown, Overland Park
Award-winning
A century ago, William Butler Yeats wrote, “Come let us mock at the good.” Many did this before he wrote, and many are doing it now. The targets are often those who advocate for beneficial change, such as women’s suffrage, emancipation or indoor plumbing.
The latest mocker is Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina. As detailed in Leonard Pitts Jr.’s March 14 column, Scott recently said, “Woke supremacy is as bad as white supremacy.” (19A, “Tim Scott knows ‘woke supremacy’ isn’t really a thing”) I don’t think so. There are no woke sundown towns.
Yeats also wrote, “Mock mockers after that.” Scott is certainly deserving. We could give him the Rush Limbaugh Award for Vituperation, or the Henry VIII Prize for Non-Wokeness.
- Robert O’Rourke, Leavenworth
Let’s start over
The proposed replacement for the Buck O’Neil Bridge is very disappointing. (March 2, 7A, “Buck O’Neil deserves more than a plain slab of concrete”) The design is vapid, stale and ugly.
As the major gateway into downtown from Kansas City International Airpoirt, it would fail to give visitors a sense of the vibrancy and imagination that has been reflected in other major architectural advances in downtown, such as the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, H&R Block World Headquarters and the T-Mobile Center, to name a few. Simply tearing down the beautiful old bridge, and not repurposing it, is a failure of imagination.
We have already lost many beautiful structures of Kansas City’s past to the wrecking ball. The old bridge is a landmark that has been depicted in many paintings by local and international artists. Its aesthetic value should not be lost. This new design is nothing more than a concrete slab and could have been designed by a first-year architecture student.
Thumbs down. Try again please, Missouri Department of Transportation.
- Patrick Orlich, Weatherby Lake
It’s our right
The For the People Act, also known as H.R. 1 and S. 1, would improve our democracy by making our election system more free, fair and accessible to all eligible Americans. This legislation would restore the Voting Rights Act, provide automatic voter registration and same-day registration, eliminate dark money in our elections, end gerrymandering and restore transparency in our government. The League of Women Voters of Johnson County joins with voting rights groups around the country in our enthusiastic support of the For the People Act.
This legislation would enshrine into law what all Americans know: Everyone deserves a voice in our democracy. Full, equal enfranchisement is fundamental to our nation. It is imperative that every voter believe in the security and integrity of our elections.
The U.S. House passed the For the People Act last week. We now call upon our senators to support this transformative bill. Sens. Roger Marshall and Jerry Moran must show their dedication to a strengthened democracy that works for all and vote in favor of the For the People Act.
- Amber Stenger, President, League of Women Voters of Johnson County, Shawnee