Americans

I found the cartoon in the News-Press on Jan. 25, "We the People Strike a Pose," very disturbing. For days, letter writers have been united in slamming another letter writer for lumping the whole group of people together and making the comments he did. Then a the paper prints a cartoon that lumps all Americans together in a negative way. What's even more disturbing is that it desecrates a national symbol. This statue being mocked symbolizes men fighting and losing their lives to give Americans their freedom.

Fortunately for Judy Lloyd, who's letter appeared May 9, she must belong to a very privileged class. Most immigrants who have come to this country have had to overcome all of the adversities that Ms. Lloyd addresses. Very few had an easy time; however, they realized that they made the choice freely to come to the United States. I have not heard of any of them being conscripted. Those newcomers to our country also understood the importance of blending in and wanted to become Americans.

Patricia Adams, agreeing with Allen Brandstater, questions why Chris Davis is teaching that Japanese-Americans were put in concentration camps. She states that "it is absolutely appalling that anyone of the baby-boomer generation [or later] would dare to presume to second-guess the president of the United States during those difficult years, 1941-1945." Speaking as a baby boomer, I can say that everything I have learned about the Japanese internments of World War II, I learned from older history teachers and textbook writers born before World War II. My history textbook from college, copyright 1968, called these internments "the only blot on the record" of American civil rights during World War II. This author was born in 1904.

Still facing a battle for dignity On June 5, 1981, Dr. Michael Gottlieb published the first description of AIDS in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. And American society officially began to turn its collective back upon its gay citizens. We died by the tens of thousands. From the White House to the Supreme Court to the churches to plains of Wyoming, gay men and women became open targets of hate and violence. I can recall taking a friend to the hospital and the nurses refusing, out of fear, to feed him. I can recall my sister banning me from visiting her children.

Roberta Medford Montrose – On January 20th, local MoveOn members in Montrose are organizing an Inaugural Bash to celebrate the historic swearing in of President Barack Obama. One of more than 2500 bashes happening all over the country, the party will bring local residents together to celebrate and recognize the work of the millions of Americans who helped achieve this victory. The Inaugural Bashes will be one of MoveOn’s largest national actions ever.  “Obama’s election is worthy of celebration – our country has moved peacefully away from the violence of racism.

I was outraged after I read the article published in the Glendale News-Press on Jan. 16, regarding the "U.S. will never recognize Genocide" where Paul Carney's obscure opinions were published. How can someone be so biased and racist toward his fellow Americans, particularly the Armenian community? To say that "the Armenian community thinks it owns Glendale" is false and quite rude. I,, myself, am a proud resident of Glendale ... and the only thing I own is my home!

Gretchen Hoffman The arguments in favor of Hollywood and the San Fernando Valley seceding from Los Angeles aren't strong enough in the eyes of the Armenian National Committee, causing the group's local leadership to come out strongly against secession. "We have worked very hard as a community to integrate ourselves into Los Angeles," said Ardashes Kassakhian, director of government relations for the Glendale-based Armenian National Committee Western Region.

INDEX Around Town A5 City Council Wrap-up A3 Classifieds A9-10 Community Forum A2 La Crescenta/ La Canada Flintridge A4 Police Report A5 Sports A7-8 WEATHER A 30% chance of showers in the late afternoon and evening. Warm and muggy, with a high of 88. Rain could stick around through Saturday. The morning after Sept. 11, 2001, Americans woke up a changed people. Our shared goals and our values as a nation were profoundly and inalterably changed in the fires of that terrible day. Like most Americans, Glendalians responded by leaping into action: giving money, donating blood and organizing fund-raisers for the victims.