Letters to the Editor | April 9, 2024

I wish people would get half as worked up about climate change as they did about the solar eclipse. My wish extends to the media, which egged people on about the celestial event and could now segue into shining a bright light on what we’re doing — and what we can do — to protect our Earth.

Ettie Davis, Philadelphia

Eighty-five years ago today, Philadelphia’s Marian Anderson gave one of her most memorable performances before a crowd of 75,000 at the Lincoln Memorial. Previously, concert organizers had requested to hold her concert at the Daughters of the American Revolution’s Constitution Hall. The DAR responded negatively, as it did not want an African American opera star singing inside its celebrated hall. Twenty-five years later, when Anderson announced her retirement, she made a bold statement by launching her farewell tour at that same Constitution Hall. Anderson, who passed away in 1993, will always be a first-class Philadelphia musical legend.

Paul L. Newman, Merion Station

The editorial cartoon by Signe Wilkinson in Sunday’s Inquirer is not funny. First, injection sites are illegal, and needle exchanges promote drug use. Recovery is available to those who want it. It is a life change — again, for those who want it. It is not easy, but doable. I have been clean and sober for 33 years. Again, it is a challenge, but doable. People who talk about injection sites and needle exchanges are misinformed and misguided. Let’s promote recovery, starting with stemming the flow of drugs, which is not only a problem in Philadelphia but across the nation.

Paul Seserko, Royersford

Councilmember Curtis Jones Jr.’s bill to stop a drug rehab center proposed in Wynnefield Heights adds to the ongoing ignorance endorsed by Mayor Cherelle L. Parker and Councilmember Quetcy Lozada in looking for new policies to stem the loss of life through drug overdoses while shutting down facilities that have experience in saving people struggling with addiction. This trio of amateurs promises to exacerbate the harm, not alleviate it.

Jones’ bill is a typical NIMBY proposal, which, if applied to every councilmanic district, would mean no facility could be approved anywhere in the city. It hardly dovetails with Parker’s “arrest or agree to rehab” proposal for Kensington. This area does not have enough rehabs to serve even voluntary inpatient treatment, let alone forced commitments. Until this administration and City Council abandon their law-and-order approach to addiction and enlist the aid of experienced professionals — and follow their advice — the rate of recovery and the lessening of overdose deaths have little chance of success in Philadelphia. As a recovered addict with 40 years of experience working with people with addictions, I know whereof I speak.

Charles A. Glackin, Philadelphia, strategicfollies@hotmail.com

Two children under the age of 5 shot themselves with unsecured guns in the past few days in Philadelphia. More than half of the U.S. has laws mandating that gun owners secure their firearms, including states like Florida, Wisconsin, and Texas. Unfortunately, Pennsylvania is not among them. Yet, there is legislation ready to pass right now that could change this. Tell your state legislators to pass safe gun storage requirements. It can save the lives of our children and the grief of their families. This is an easy law to get behind.

Kathleen Coyne, volunteer, CeaseFire PA, Wallingford

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