Letters from the week of April 30

Town Without Pity: "Bunch of Teabaggers," April 23

Scott Wilson, what race baiting did you encounter at the April 15 tea party? Sure, most in attendance were white and over 30. Does that automatically signal "racist" in your view? Does any and every disagreement with government signify "racism" now that a person of color sits in the Oval Office? That's irresponsible at best and, at worst, libelous.

Your remark about "ignorance of the war monument's historic significance" also has me wondering. To me the Liberty Memorial represents those who gave their lives so that we can be free to voice our thoughts and opinions.

Kerry Black, Kansas City, Missouri

Martin: "Future Shock," April 23

Regarding the Power & Light District falling short of a consultant's projections: Could the usurious parking fees be a factor? Locals aren't willing to pay $10 "special event" parking rates (and it always seems to be a special event, whether there is an event at the Sprint Center or not) to have a drink or a bite to eat after work. A very few businesses may validate, but most parking is pay-upfront no matter how long you plan to park. It is irksome to know that our tax dollars were used to finance this project and then have to drive through potholes in the city streets to pay for the privilege of enjoying this tourist trap!

C.A. Swisher, Kansas City, Missouri

Martin: "Pimped and Parked," April 16

Thanks for David Martin's article on the stimulus money and the cuts in services to the Metro. I ride it daily, and it seems like every day, among other things, I pay more for it and get less. Same goes for The Kansas City Star!

Mike Crawford, Kansas City, Missouri

Feature: "East Side Promises," April 16

I remember being a minority at 2525 Hardesty, one of a handful of white boys at Askew Elementary. It was 1994 when I left the East Side to live with my aunt in Raytown; I was in fourth grade, but the inner city had already made my eyes wide. I grew up poor, like all my friends there — with a single mother who had four kids and only an East High School education. I smoked my first cigarette in third grade, and I broke into my first house the same summer.

I just had an epiphany: Minute Circle was the only thing that saved us, my older brother and me. He is finishing his Ph.D. in chemistry, and I am happily a Rockhurst University dropout, six credits shy of a B.A. in philosophy — kind of poetic. In many ways, it is because we got out of the neighborhood, but more, I see now, it was the compassion of the volunteers and staff at the Minute Circle who taught me how to swim and gave me my yellow belt in karate. Just to see The Pitch's tiny black-and-white photo of the boarded-up windows of my old place brought back an entire life I had almost forgotten, or taken for granted. I swelled with tears thinking about the kids of the East Side Boys & Girls Club and the neglect of an area ignored.

This summer, I will be there to volunteer. Perhaps an ounce of my experience could be of help.

Name withheld on request

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