Arcata’s a hot mess We are visiting Arcata overnight as we tour areas of California. The Hampton Inn suggested we have dinner in the Plaza area. We were shocked to experience the amount of people drinking alcohol, smoking weed in their vans, begging for money, and just loitering. We did not remain in the area.…
Letters to the Editor, October 24, 2018
Much-maligned, likeable Bill I like Bill. Bill McKinley, that is, the guy who’s been hanging out in the Arcata Plaza since 1906. People who want him removed try to associate him with various crimes to which he is not connected. He should be removed, they tell us, because in the 1860s indigenous people were being…
Letters to the Editor October 17, 2018: Vote this way – no, that way!
McKinley belongs here While we are shocked and saddened by the climate of hate both in our nation and in our community, we do not believe moving the statue of McKinley from the Plaza is the right decision. While we completely support the removal of Confederate statues across the country that were placed in communities…
Letters to the Editor, October 10, 2018
No two ways about it I am writing in response to Michael Winkler’s opinion piece on Arcata’s McKinley Statue. The first thing objectionable about an elected representative sharing their opinion is that they are not voicing the opinions of those they represent. Instead, they are using their elected position to share their own personal opinion.…
Letters to the Editor, October 3, 2018
Speed hump all roads On September 5th I emailed the following letter to Arcata City Manager Karen Diemer and Arcata City Engineer Doby Class. I was seeking responses not just to the letter, but, in particular, to increasingly dangerous traffic conditions in Arcata. I have yet to hear from either Diemer or Class. The City…
Letters to the Editor, September 26, 2018
McKinley? Why McKinley? Supporters of Measure M want to keep the statue in place. Recently an Arcata City Councilmember touted McKinley’s civil rights record stating “McKinley actively supported the rights of black Americans at a time when black Americans were being systematically deprived of those rights.” Actively supported? Actual civil rights activists of his time,…
Letters to the Editor, September 19, 2018: This land is everyone’s land
Yes on Measure M My name is Lisa (Lytle) Morehouse. Arcata has always been home; it holds my roots. My family moved to Arcata in 1968 and I have lived here 50 years. I grew up poor in a trailer park in town. I bore my children here; my father died here. I have volunteered…
Letters to the Editor, Sept. 13, 2018
No on Measure M, really It might be helpful to respond to TorgToon’s piece regarding accuracy of information or how much common ground we who want something else in the center of our Plaza vs those who want the McKinley statue to stay there forever. So here’s a few responses I’d like to make of…
Letters, September 5, 2018: With just one respectable choice, earnest dialogue is needed on Measure M(cKinley)
Measure M halts resolutions I had hoped that having a question about the future of Arcata’s McKinley statue on the ballot would result in more dialogue concerning respect, racial animus, inclusion, listening to contrary views, learning Wiyot history, examining the Uniontown settlement story, and a myriad of other challenging and crucial topics. Alas, I haven’t…
Letters to the Editor, August 29, 2018
Judging historical figures by modern standards No one is born a bigot. Prejudice is not an inherited trait. But the environment one grows up in can obviously have a huge impact on how one sees people of different faiths, races and ethnicities. It is perhaps instructive to note that William McKinley grew up in a…