The “Rhymes With Orange” comic in the March 21 Sunday Valley News shows a police officer, who is colored brown, on his knees addressing a detective, who is colored white and standing, calling him “Boss.” The joke has nothing to do with presenting the two figures this way. Hilary B. Price, the cartoonist, must have consciously chosen to portray them as representing American racial status. Drawing them that way teaches readers, many of them children, to regard this racial hierarchy as “normal.” We need to find ways to overcome entrenched racism, not add to it. Where does the Valley News stand on this?
Is there anyone at the Valley News who would reach out to this cartoonist and the agency selling her work and insist that the Valley News has no room for cartoons that carry racist overtones?
NELSON KASFIR
Norwich
New Hampshire bill HB 544 is a strange piece of legislation as it seems to say that we can’t teach racism. Well, who teaches racism? No one in their right mind. But it is taught covertly, absorbed through interactions with those around us. It is also built into policy. One example is called redlining.
This bill is really aimed at preventing programs that help us to see the nuances of racism. Those programs are needed.
NANCY WIGHTMAN
Cornish
A change made to my Forum letter published on Sunday (“Toward Sustainable Transportation”) likely gave readers the incorrect impression that tax credits have expired on all electric vehicles. The credits have expired for manufacturers that have sold more than 200,000 EVs, which includes Chevy and Tesla. Credits of up to $7,500 are still available for Nissan, Hyundai, Honda, Toyota, VW, Volvo and many more. The amount of the credit depends on the size of the battery and the number of vehicles sold. The Biden administration plan would increase the limit to 600,000 vehicles per manufacturer.
BEN STEELE
Etna
The writer is a member of the Sustainable Hanover Transportation Task Force.
I read with interest the article in the Valley News written by Teddy Rosenbluth of the Concord Monitor (“Families highlight mental health gaps: During state budget hearing, advocates call for funding,” March 22). It hit the nail on the head, with the focus being the awful lack of funds for childhood behavioral health resources.
As a peer support specialist, I would like to point out that it is really not necessary to put peer support specialist in quotes when talking about the mobile crisis team.
Peer support specialists have been a critical part of treatment teams for many years. They are more than someone recovering from their own mental illness. A peer support specialist is a person with lived experience who is both trained and certified to provide support and guidance to the individual in need.
ANGELA MONTANO
Claremont
With so many people receiving a COVID-19 vaccination these days, I’m often asked if I’ll be lining up for a shot, too. My answer is always a resounding, “no.” And to help those wanting to understand why I am not eager for the jab, I am willing to concisely explain my personal reasoning:
■ The vaccines are “authorized” by the FDA, but none are FDA-approved. Though they have received “emergency use authorization,” these vaccines have not undergone the same time-consuming review and trial process that every other vaccine on the market has. Could vaccine recipients experience adverse effects years down the road? Possibly. A few already have.
■ Neither the vaccine manufacturers nor the government have liability if these products cause harm. This is true for all vaccines, and since these products are so new, I feel even less convinced of their safety.
■ It is my constitutional right to decline any medical procedure that I do not desire to undergo. It’s your right as well.
To be clear, this is not an “anti-vax” stance, nor is it intended to dissuade anyone from making choices for themselves that align with their own ethos and principles. Rather, I write in celebration of the legal and moral requirement of informed consent, and the ability and natural-born right for all persons to have the freedom to make choices pertaining to their own health and well-being.
Lastly, take care to not bully or harass those who have a difference of opinion. Skepticism is an important process in American democracy. Vocally condemn any government or politician who wishes to take these constitutional rights away, through vaccine passports or otherwise. Take responsibility for your own health, let others do the same, and always question the biases of your sources — be they professionals, politicians or otherwise.
KATE EASTMAN
Quechee
Editor’s note: According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective. The vaccines were “evaluated in tens of thousands of participants in clinical trials” and met the Food and Drug Administration’s “rigorous scientific standards for safety, effectiveness, and manufacturing quality needed to support emergency use authorization.” More information is at www.cdc.gov.