Appalled by overt racism in DougCo schools

Re: “Teen faces racial slurs, threats of lynching,” May 1 news story

I was shocked and appalled when I read the article entitled “Teen faces racial slurs, threats of lynching” in The Denver Post on May 1. Naïvely I did not think we had school districts and communities in the state that were so overtly racist.

To equate having an equity policy to teaching critical race theory is just absurd. Critical race theory has been a hot button for conservatives but it is not taught in public high schools. The behaviors of teachers blaming a minority student for stealing a water bottle or putting Nevaeh Ganzy into the group supporting Jim Crow laws is cruel and certainly does not dignify the teaching profession.

The platitudes of the district spokesperson Paula Hans where she says “we appreciate the Ganzy family bringing their concerns to us so we can make sure our system is addressing their needs” does not match with the behavior within the district.

She would not answer the question are the students’ threats being addressed but instead fell back on privacy. It is not a privacy issue to say yes or no and explain how change is being implemented without naming students.

The disregard by both the principal and the executive director of schools to Jeremiah’s email is an indication that no one in the system wants to address the problem of white supremacy in the Douglas County School District.

Susan Schiff, Arvada

Get the best security for our DPS students

I understand Denver Public Schools is seeking to protect our schools with security walkthrough weapons detectors. There are a few systems out there and I am asking our DPS leaders to make sure they choose the best system available to protect our children.

I am asking them to not do what the Douglas County Commissioners did and put a lower grade system into Stem Schools without properly comparing and testing. I am asking DPS to do a complete RFP (request for proposals) and due diligence and run side-by-side testing to make sure our children are protected with the best system available, not the second best.

Don’t just believe snake oil salesmen.

I am asking our citizens to make sure DPS does proper testing.

Doug Schull, Castle Rock

Property tax increases are driven by government greed

Government should be on the side of the people they represent. We’ve just received our new property valuations with dropped jaws. Just by sitting here, our house increased by $100,000 each of the past two years, meaning higher real estate taxes that are already high enough.

As for young families looking to get out of pricey rentals, the government has moved the goal line farther back, making it almost impossible to own. I don’t think my conscience would allow me to sell at the current sticker price. Regarding inflation; let’s call it by its real name: greed.

June Ammerman, Arvada

Property owners have a right to be upset about an average increase of approximately 38% in their taxes. However, they are stating their concern all wrong.

It’s true that home prices probably have inflated tremendously in the past two years since our last assessments. But what does that have to do with my property taxes? If the counties need to raise our taxes from year-to-year in order to keep up with the increased costs of maintaining roads, policing the neighborhoods, fighting fires, and educating our 2.2 children then the increase ought to be tied to the actual increase in those costs based on inflation.

Suppose that someday the value of our homes goes down. Would we tell firefighters, police, and teachers, “Sorry, this year your salary is dropping”? The value of our homes, whether they rise or fall, does not affect the cost of providing those services.

Denny Cannon, Littleton

Finding common ground

I, like others, want to expand the conversation, to find the common ground that we know is there but is obfuscated by those who profit by provocation.

One obstacle is the division between those who think that everyone should be responsible for themselves (the “personal responsibility” argument), and those who think that society should provide some level of safety net to those who need it (the “we as a society have a duty to help others” argument).

Often the focus is on one or the other when the reality is that both are valid. We all have the responsibility to take care of ourselves and our families, and to make good choices; but circumstances, whether influenced by us or outside of our control, impact our ability to provide for ourselves.

When we discuss social issues, can we acknowledge that both these ideas can coexist? People who identify more as “left” need also to speak about personal responsibility, and those who identify more as “right” need also to acknowledge that some either can’t or, yes, don’t, take care of their basic needs, but that society will benefit if all our citizens have the ability to meet their basic needs.

If we can get to that place of mutual acknowledgment, then we can all argue about the “hows” of doing something about it.

We have common ground. We need to find it and silence the provocateurs who have only division as their goal.

Robin Flowers, Golden

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