Letters to the Editor | Oct. 6, 2023

A motorcyclist with a group of ATVs and dirt bikes that surrounded and trapped a young mother’s car in Center City proceeded to stomp in her rear windshield over her children’s heads, point a gun in her face, and then assault her. How many more violent incidents before I stop hearing about how dirt biking keeps young Philadelphians out of trouble? I do not want to hear people say that we simply have to put up with the deafening noise, and then complain that their local stores are closing and they have nowhere left to shop or work. To say we should let “bike life” keep menacing our streets for fear of how violently bikers would act if we put an end to it is to condone a very particular ideology: It’s called terrorism.

Danny Buckwalter, Philadelphia, danny.f.buckwalter@gmail.com

I was so disappointed that Philadelphia’s Office of the City Representative, in the name of diversity and inclusion, once again raised the flag of the Chinese Communist Party at the end of September. This is an insult to all those people who came to Philadelphia to escape brutal persecution by China’s authoritarian regime. Since the party took control in 1949, it has caused the deaths of more than 80 million of its own citizens. Falun Gong practitioners, Uyghurs, “house Christians,” democracy advocates, and many more are illegally imprisoned, tortured, and even killed for practicing their basic rights, guaranteed under the Chinese Constitution but blatantly disregarded by the Chinese government. How can we celebrate decades of death and destruction in the city where our freedom was born?

Jessica D. Russo, Philadelphia, drjdrusso@gmail.com

Everyone should have a fair and just opportunity to survive cancer. That is why I recently traveled to Washington, D.C., to ask our elected officials to support legislation that would eliminate financial barriers to prostate cancer screening. The Prostate-Specific Antigen Screening for High-risk Insured Men Act would waive cost-sharing requirements for men with the highest risk of prostate cancer, including Black men and those with a family history of the disease. If the legislation is passed, men at high risk of developing prostate cancer would be able to get screenings with no out-of-pocket costs. I thanked my senator, Cory Booker, for introducing this bill, and urged Rep. Donald Norcross to show his support by cosponsoring the House legislation. It is critical we remove cost barriers to prostate cancer screening for higher-risk individuals and reduce disparities. As prostate cancer continues to be the second leading cause of cancer death for men in the U.S., such legislation would be a lifesaver for improving health outcomes for those most at risk.

Nicole Bodnar, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, Sewell

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