Vote Brown, Miller to end prison cycle
Odds are, you have never been to prison. Odds are, you do not know anyone in county jail. However, if you are poor and live in Hamilton County, Tennessee, odds change. If you are poor in Hamilton County, your life is different and the cost of your mistakes often includes your human dignity and freedom.
No matter your mistake, I would never want you to go through the trauma of what mostly young, poor men go through when they fail to make child support or show up late to a court date or get caught with a joint in their pocket. And when they go into a Hamilton County jail, they often can’t afford a phone call to a friend.
I want to see an end to this cruelty. I want to see an end to the private prison system in Hamilton County before our county government signs a 100-year deal to continue the oppression of the poor.
This is why on July 13, the first day of early voting, I will cast my vote for Aloyse Brown for county mayor and Victor Miller for county sheriff. I urge you to do the same. Vote local.
Emily Kate Boyd
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Trump et al should not forget who is in charge
This letter is to President Trump, his base and the GOP, and Jeff Sessions: Don’t use Romans 13:1-4, to try to justify the evil that is done by you all about the immigration policy. God is nothing to play with. All of you need to understand that all of your lives are in God’s hand.
Which is a better guarantee that a person will be a law-abiding citizen, or committed to Jesus Christ, as one’s savior and Lord than by showing love and compassion for those little ones. Read Luke 18:16.
Jesse Mills
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Do not stay quiet in face of racism
Earlier this month a commentator not affiliated with the Times Free Press published a column criticizing the hiring choices of the Hamilton County Department of Education superintendent, Dr. Bryan Johnson. The criticism was not based on the talents or qualifications of the hires but rather explicitly on each hire’s skin color.
Whereas I am baffled by the outlet’s choice to post that piece, I am painfully unsurprised that there are people in this community who see the world through such a myopic scope. What does surprise me, however, is the utter silence that followed the posting of that article. I don’t understand how this community can sit idly by when an individual with an obvious platform so blatantly espouses racism. Why is the majority silently standing by?
This is not “the Chattanooga way” and does not lead us to the kind of community we are working so hard to cultivate.
Chattanooga cannot be quiet when our own citizens are marginalized. If this isn’t a time to speak out, when will that time be? I cannot sit idly, so this is my move. Next move is yours, Chattanooga. Please, let’s get this right.
Shannon Lanier