Letters to the Editor | April 16, 2024

The verdict in the O.J. Simpson murder trial polarized the country, with many white people upset that justice had not been done and many Black people satisfied that it had.

I saw it another way. The American justice system has rarely been about truth or justice, but rather about who can buy it. There was never any question that wealthy white people could usually buy the outcome they wanted: innocent if they were accused, guilty if they were victims. However, Black people were generally viewed as guilty in the eyes of the law, and money did not matter. Simpson changed all that. His “dream team” of the finest lawyers money could buy finally showed that in the American justice system, a wealthy and famous Black person could get the same result as a wealthy and famous white person. For the first time, there was colorblind treatment of a minority group: the rich.

Kenneth Gorelick, Wayne

Robert S. Nix’s op-ed (April 15) confirms my belief, and hope, that there are still rational non-MAGA Republicans, at least as implicitly stated in the op-ed, who reject MAGA and Trumpism and support traditional American democracy. I share Mr. Nix’s admiration for Liz Cheney. Regardless of policy differences, her courage in the face of Trump sycophantism is commendable. Left unanswered by Mr. Nix is how he intends to vote in November. A vote for Donald Trump (as he seems to criticize Mitch McConnell and Chris Sununu for intending), or for a write-in candidate, or not voting at all, all are votes for Trump, against democracy, and would be of the utmost hypocrisy. Come on, Mr. Nix — and all rational Republicans — go ahead and commit to voting for President Joe Biden. That is the only action that would be aligned with your op-ed. Do not be a political hypocrite like McConnell, Sununu, and all the other Republicans who know better but intend to put a criminal traitor back into office.

John Demmy, Wayne

David Hardy’s recent letter advocating for more school choice options left out important information. The fact is that Pennsylvania already has more school choice than any other state. By the numbers, Pennsylvania taxpayers currently fund 500 public school districts, 164 public charter schools, and 14 public cyber charter schools. Plus, since 2001, taxpayers have helped fund over 700 private and 2,000 non-public schools via $2.5 billion in Educational Improvement Tax Credit vouchers and Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit vouchers. School choice can have positive outcomes. However, public school districts have more transparency and accountability than any other school option. For example, many parents do not know that based on the 2022-23 Pennsylvania System of School Assessment test results, Pennsylvania cyber charter schools had an average graduation rate of 66% compared with 87% for brick-and-mortar schools. Per state law, we have almost no data regarding the impact of the state’s investment in tax credit vouchers. However, we know that the Commonwealth Foundation and other Jeffrey Yass-funded organizations have made millions from those vouchers, and continue advocating for their expansion.

School choice requires a better system that improves transparency and accountability for all taxpayer-funded options so parents can make well-informed decisions about their child’s education and taxpayers can see the return on their investment.

Tracy Smith, Macungie

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