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Let’s right history
As a white male student, growing up in Casco and attending Lake Region High School, where the faculty and student body are made up of almost entirely white people, one might think racism would not have made an impact. It did.
Of course, not because I felt discriminated against, but because there were words and actions among my peers that are racist, and there were educational materials that we were taught that are racist and lacking truth. These stereotypes, prejudices, and lies continue to negatively affect me. It deeply saddens me when I hear people speaking out of ignorance using hateful language to discriminate against people based on skin color. I will no longer be silent when I hear this. I will speak out against racism.
Now is the time to respond to the demands of so many fellow Americans including members of Black Lives Matter, to condemn and take action against racism. Now is the time that as white people, we hold ourselves, our schools, our government, and each other accountable for allowing systems of oppression to physically, emotionally, and otherwise harm the lives of others.
I’m asking other white people to examine our collective histories and acknowledge how this nation has built and maintained white supremacy systems that white people benefit from at the expense of BIPOC (Black and Indigenous and People of Color). We must work together to tackle the issue of racism in ourselves, our communities, curriculum, and everything that we do.
Only by acknowledging what has been and continues to be done to oppress BIPOC, engaging with this necessary work to understand these systems, and to rebuild them centered around equity and racial justice will we design a world that doesn’t allow for discrimination or harm based on skin color.
We cannot rewrite our history, we have to right history right now.
Lucas Brown
Casco
Kidman the senator we need
Like many registered Democrats, I am tired of the parade of uninspiring political candidates who have more corporate sponsors than a NASCAR driver. We faced a primary season where candidates like Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar, and Joe Biden told us to hope for less and settle for the status quo. Running on a platform of “I’m Not Trump” is peak cynicism, and it’s sad to see the same thing happening in Maine’s Senate race.
We’re down to three candidates, and the most moneyed and most advertised of them is running on a similar platform as the presidential candidate: “I’m Not Collins.” In my opinion, Democrats raised a ton of money by scaring voters into thinking that their corporate candidate is the best one, and that her defeat would spell doom. Why must we settle for another political can of email spam, meaningless promises, and false fundraising deadlines?
Bre Kidman has worked harder than any of the other candidates to listen to as many Mainers as possible from all over the state without once holding out their hand to ask for a donation. In fact, Kidman stopped actively fundraising last year, and has used what campaign funds they did raise to buy groceries for people who needed them as the COVID-19 pandemic began.
Kidman supports both the Green New Deal and Medicare for All, and as a defense attorney has worked to ensure that everyone’s constitutional rights are upheld when challenged.
The primary is on July 14 and is ranked choice. Please vote for Bre Kidman as your first choice for Democratic nomination to unseat Susan Collins. When you see the avoiding tactics of both Collins and Sara Gideon, ask yourself what kind of senator we need more: the one hiding in their office, or the one knocking on the door, ready to discuss policy?
Kenneth Lamb
Standish
Why I support Gideon
I visited my first Planned Parenthood (PP) health center many years ago as a college freshman, away from home for the first time and without a clue about how to take care of myself. I was lucky enough to have a friend bring me to our local PP health center, which became my primary provider for the next few years.
Planned Parenthood did everything from shepherd me through a frightening abnormal Pap smear to providing me safe, effective birth control. This enabled me to complete my studies and to take the time I needed to be ready to begin a family of my own when the time was right. Now, many years later, my kids are grown and on their own. I want them, their partners, and the countless others who need them to have the same vital access to Planned Parenthood’s full reproductive services that I did.
This is why I support Sara Gideon for the U.S. Senate in 2020. Maine needs a champion who will protect our rights and our health. I believe Gideon to be such a champion because she has a track record of prioritizing our health care, especially our reproductive health care, throughout her tenure in the Maine Legislature.
It is this track record that has earned her Planned Parenthood Action Fund’s endorsement in her 2020 Senate bid. Unlike her opponent, who once held but has since lost that endorsement, Gideon has demonstrated that she can both stand up to extremists and work across the aisle to make life better for her constituents.
Planned Parenthood Action Fund and I agree: Vote for Sara Gideon for the U.S. Senate in 2020!
Jody Rose
Machias
Vote for Baldacci
I am writing to enthusiastically affirm my support for Joe Baldacci for state Senate District 9. My family has known Joe for over 20 years and I have participated with him periodically in community service projects.
In 2006, when Bangor wanted to shut down the East Side Dakin Swimming Pool, he was there immediately to help set up the fundraising and succeed in raising more than $100,000 to save the pool.
As a four-term city councilor and mayor, he worked vigorously on many projects.
Currently, he is helping the Hope for Homeless group to expand their fundraising efforts, to help local homeless people.
Over the years, I have found him to be genuine, proactive and generous. This is the type of person we need in Augusta.
I urge all Bangor and Hermon voters to give him your support. You won’t be disappointed.
Michael Robinson
Bangor