Letters to the Editor

My mother would be 117 years old were she alive today. She had a penchant for genealogy and touring national parks. Family members taught her anyone with her unusual family name was related.

Traveling to a national park one summer, we entered a beautiful small town in Tennessee. Upon noticing the name Tom Cage, Proprietor, on the side of a building, she urged my father to stop to meet this previously unknown relative. The three of us entered and she asked for the owner. The black gentleman behind the counter replied “I’m Tom Cage.”

Mother stammered her explanation that she thought they were related. He kindly listened to her story. His story followed. His grandfather was captured by black slave traders who took large populations from African villages and sold them to slave ships going to Europe and America. He became a slave owned by Mother’s ancestor, Tom Cage.

Although free to leave after the Civil War, the plantation families decided leaving their homes there was unacceptable. Their attachment to the Cage family was mutual. They remained and legally adopted the Cage name as their own. Mr. Cage explained this was not an uncommon practice after the war.

This childhood story from Mr. Cage may offer insight. He lamented people of his own color committing the heinous act of selling another human being. We are all one family in God’s eyes. He does not see people in black or white. Our Father sees us, His children, through the lens of love. May it someday be so.

Mary Irwin, Tyler

VICTIMOLOGY CULTURE

Re: The 6/30/20 guest commentary “A Tale of Two Cities”:

Very sad that a reasonably literate young man with a very promising future is swallowed up by the victimology culture. After a lengthy self-congratulatory paragraph, Mr. Ferguson lost me at, “I consider myself one of the lucky ones to make it out of Tyler.” In general, my suggestion to students is to study hard, soak up all that teachers can offer, ignore extracurricular activities, graduate, get a job, pay some serious taxes and then return with an opinion that will have some weight. As the author is a senior political science student at the University of North Texas, this is still possible?

Ted Gould, Tyler

LET THEM FUND IT

It is becoming apparent that the renaming of Robert E Lee and John Tyler issue is not going to go away. There is so much more involved in doing this than just putting a new sign out front! My suggestion is that the school board outline a budget on the cost that would be incurred to change the name for each school. Since it is such an explosive issue in the community there should be no taxpayer funding used in the cost of making the change. Let the name change be contingent on the funds being raised privately. Lets see if those that want it, want it badly enough to fund it! If so, then maybe there is something to talk about. If not, then they need to be quiet!

Laura Page, Flint

NEVER FORGET

Some of the most soul-searching and life-changing experiences I’ve had were visiting concentration camps in Germany and Austria. The horrible things that were done at these places are a national shame for all the wonderful people from both countries.

However, they admit the guilt of their evil forefathers and let the hallowed sites remain, as a testimony to the world. Anyone who visits these places are forever changed for the better.

I hope that we can visit our national monuments, do some self-reflection and learn from our forefathers (even those who erred), so that we aren’t doomed to make the same mistakes and our ancestors may become better.

As it says on one monument on the Danube, “neimals vergessen,” which means, “never forget.”

Kelly Rhoads, Bullard

DON’T ERASE PAST

Many years ago in seventh grade history class at New London Junior High, our teacher Maureen Lancaster required all of her students to memorize the following: “No man is fit to be entrusted with control of the present who is ignorant of the past. And no people who are indifferent to the past need hope to make the future great.”

I do not know where the quote originated, but I think it is very appropriate for the current times. We learn from history and we learn from our individual and collective mistakes. America should not let troublemakers try to erase our past and redefine our future. I am proud to be an American.

Valerie Childress, Arp