Last week at the US Capitol, one day before It was attacked by an insurgent mob, my local Congresswoman made a speech, calling for the hearts and minds of our children. During her speech she said, "Hitler was right . . . 'whoever has the youth, has the future.'"
To say we were disappointed in our Congresswoman would be a major understatement.
I'm grateful our regional paper, the Belleville-News Democrat, published my letter responding to the Congresswoman's actions. Here's a link to the letter, with a short excerpt below:
"Congresswoman Miller, you are sworn to protect my children. You are a grandmother, like my children’s Jewish grandmother— a refugee who fled home as a child because of the anti-Semitic violence initiated and enflamed by Hitler. Your words brought fear of harm to children in your district. This is not winning youth or their futures. This is threatening
their right to live and thrive.
This is true for my children and anyone else who is Jewish, Black, Latino, indigenous, or marginalized in any other way. You are propagating hate."
Friends, let's hold our leaders accountable to their behavior. Words and actions that harm children should not be allowed to slide, or able to hide behind even more outrageous news stories.