Letters to the Editor | Sept. 11, 2025

As someone who served at the Pentagon on 9/11, I was proud to serve as a defender of our homeland, rather than being thought of as one who wages war. By issuing an executive order to rename the U.S. Department of Defense to the Department of War, it portrays us as a warmongering nation rather than one that is peace-loving. We need to be a role model among nations as one that advocates peace, rather than one that stands ready to wage war. Our president should emulate what President John F. Kennedy said in a speech at American University in 1963, where he sought to change the perception that the U.S. was committed to a strategy of “aggression and annihilation,” instead advocating for a “strategy of peace.” Our president’s legal counsel should advise him that although he may issue the executive order, only Congress can legally change the name by codifying it into law. Hopefully, Congress will reject the change.

Matt Drozd, retired lieutenant colonel, U.S. Air Force, Pittsburgh

As we mark the 24th anniversary of the tragic events of Sept. 11, 2001, our thoughts and prayers are with the thousands of innocent lives lost and with the courageous first responders who risked everything to save others.

For American Muslims, this day serves as both a solemn remembrance and a call to action. Members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community have organized hundreds of blood drives across the nation to honor the victims and heroes of that day. In giving blood, we reaffirm the value of every human life and strive to transform a day of tragedy into an opportunity for service.

Our faith compels us to act in this way. The Holy Quran teaches: “Whosoever killed a person … it shall be as if he had killed all mankind; and whoso gave life to one, it shall be as if he had given life to all mankind.” Likewise, the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) reminded us that just as sacred as the holy month and land of pilgrimage, so, too, is the life, property, and honor of every human being. Even the smallest act of kindness, he taught, can protect us from the fire of hatred.

In remembering 9/11, we resolve not only to mourn the lives lost but to honor them through acts of compassion, service, and unity.

Madeel Abdullah, Garnet Valley

In their ongoing negotiations about the Pennsylvania budget, our state senators are discussing SEPTA as if it were just discretionary spending. Our major resources are investments. They are not optional expenses. A society cannot function without its infrastructure: roads, utilities, telecom, schools, state and local police, hospitals, and transportation. Resources throughout the state need to be supported by investment.

Philadelphia provides value for the state and region. A lot of employment and personal income in the state is generated in the Philadelphia area. The region generates a lot of state tax revenue. Philadelphia is one of the world’s great cities and produces major tourist revenue. We have records of history. Our universities and research institutes attract students and researchers from around the globe.

SEPTA provides an efficient service for the region. We need to continue our investment in SEPTA.

Harry Thorn, Philadelphia

In an unsigned opinion, the U.S. Supreme Court has issued a decision with remarkable similarities to the long-discredited and greatly reviled Dred Scott decision. Scott, who escaped enslavement and sued his captor, saying that because he had been taken into Illinois, a free state where slavery was illegal, he ought to be free.

The Supreme Court, in 1857, ruled that Scott had no legal rights because he was “not a citizen.”

The current Supreme Court ruled that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, without a warrant, without even knowing who the “suspected” person is, can arrest and detain a person because they appear to be an undocumented immigrant. It denies the most basic constitutional right — the presumption of innocence — to people suspected, for any reason, to be acting in a criminal way.

Because we have the 13th and 14th Amendments, the Dred Scott decision is gone. Today’s SCOTUS ruling can and will be used freely by ICE agents against people of color and those with a Spanish accent, who now have no rights to protect them.

Marvin Elias, Swarthmore

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