Tyrone Beason’s column “Feelings, realities exposed by vandalism” had one of the compelling quotes of the year: “Battling racism and creating conscientious communities is mainly the job of us grown-ups.”
I find it so discouraging and enraging — as well as not really surprising — that folks are writing in with flimsy attempts to define the mutilation of Jasmine Iona Brown’s street-art portraits of her son as other than racist. Those comments strike me as an attempt to convince us that racism can’t happen here.
The insistence of some readers about the objective of this vandalism reminds me how important it is to keep writing, telling these stories and teaching that “justice for all” requires a vigilance on everyone’s part. These are not isolated incidents and, as grown-ups, it is our job to keep the light on reality.
Victoria Kaplan, Seattle