Letters to the Editor | Dec. 23, 2024

It starts with a belief that your political views are so important that you can extinguish life to prove your point. It is not new. It was the story behind John Wilkes Booth’s assassination of Abraham Lincoln because he disagreed with him about ending slavery. More recent examples include the brutal assault of Paul Pelosi by a man searching for his wife, then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the mass murder of 11 Jewish people attending Shabbat services in Pittsburgh by a man who believed Jews were enabling immigration, Timothy McVeigh bombing a federal building in Oklahoma City, and, of course, the Unabomber.

In today’s America, we have a deregulated social media where hate speech is enabled, if not elevated, on some platforms, and we have easy access to weapons. It’s a toxic brew. Turning a murder suspect, Luigi Mangione, into a folk hero points to a growing sickness in America, where it’s becoming acceptable to take on a frustrating system with violence and cruelty. We can start a process of healing by recognizing that calls to violence are not an acceptable part of our First Amendment rights. We can also begin the process of making weapons of war harder to obtain. It’s a start.

Elliott Miller, Bala Cynwyd

Opinion pieces about the Daniel Penny trial like those by Solomon Jones sadden me. When there is zero evidence of racial animosity, why go there? Jones includes facts selectively to create a certain impression but leaves out critical factors that likely influenced the jury (which included people of color) to acquit. Jordan Neely didn’t just say he was prepared to die, he also said, “Someone is going to die today,” while making half lunges at passengers. Several people of color on the subway said they were scared to death. The city medical examiner rushed to judgment that the cause of death was a choke hold, not waiting for the toxicology results. Among Neely’s previous 42 arrests were three that involved assaults on women on the subway. The sad thing isn’t that Neely died because he was Black, it’s that he died because the system doesn’t have an effective way to help rehabilitate severely mentally ill people who repeatedly commit crimes.

Brian Suckow, Palo Alto, Calif.

As if City Council’s decision to approve the Sixers arena was not egregious enough, we learn from the Econsult report that Jefferson Station would become essentially destroyed by becoming a “darker, smaller, more difficult place to access.” As columnist Inga Saffron notes, the result could be a grim place that could foster creepy halls and criminal activities. It would destroy the existing businesses along the mall corridor. Taxpayer money needs to support public places, not private arenas. Great cities have public places and transportation hubs that create awe and belonging. Jefferson Station needs to be preserved. SEPTA needs to step up now and make it clear that building an arena will cause irreparable harm to the Regional Rail system and blow a huge hole in its budget, which would end up being funded by the taxpayers, not the billionaires.

Walter Tsou, Philadelphia

Other than the late publication date, Inga Saffron’s front-page column on Jefferson Station was a powerful explanation about very specific reasons why the proposal to build the Sixers arena should never have been considered in the first place. The details examined by the Econsult report overshadow any of the hyped-up issues repeatedly covered, discussed, and excused.

Why had the results of the Econsult not been published before this? Eliminate the below-street-level food court, eliminate the skylights that bring daylight into SEPTA’s Jefferson Station, make the broad underground corridors “a warren of narrow, twisting passageways,” and make the station a “dreary underground depot” with fewer street-level entrances and exits, making using the trains less convenient. The proposed work for the arena will disrupt SEPTA operations, with the overhead wires being changed, SEPTA suspending service for periods of time, and some trains never resuming service.

The Inquirer has done the public a great disservice by not publishing this and more related information sooner and repeatedly. The mayor and City Council are seriously wrong to allow the construction of the 76ers arena in Center City.

Lew Hemmer, Lansdale

The presentation slides used by a Villanova psychologist at a conference last month, as reported in The Inquirer, display a dangerously misleading narrative about Zionism and the Jewish community’s connection to Israel. Zionism is the movement for Jewish self-determination in their ancestral homeland, Israel. Linking Zionism to fascism neglects the bond many Jews share with Israel and fosters antisemitism.

A 2021 Pew Research study found that 80% of Jewish people, including atheists, view Zionism as integral to their identity, demonstrating that a connection to Israel is central to the identity of a significant portion of the Jewish population. Equating this connection to Israel with fascism — a tactic rooted in Soviet-era propaganda — fuels stereotypes and maligns Jewish self-determination by conflating it with one of history’s most reviled ideologies.

Criticism of Israel or its policies is not inherently antisemitic. Many Zionists are critical of Israeli policy. However, demonizing Zionism by associating it with fascism and rape culture crosses a line. Anti-Zionism becomes antisemitic when it employs such tropes or denies Jews the right to self-determination. At a time of rising antisemitism, these slides, presented to over 900 mental health professionals, are especially concerning. Misinformation of this kind has far-reaching consequences, particularly when shared with those responsible for providing care to others.

Andrew Goretsky, regional director, Anti-Defamation League, Philadelphia Office

FIFA’s decision to award Saudi Arabia the 2034 World Cup has sparked criticism from human rights groups like Amnesty International. Central to these is the risk of worker exploitation during infrastructure preparations. Critics argue FIFA is aware of these risks, given Saudi Arabia’s labor practices, and has proceeded regardless. FIFA’s handling of migrant worker issues during the 2022 Qatar World Cup has amplified these anxieties, questioning its ability to enforce protections. Saudi Arabia’s record on human rights in general, and especially women’s rights, is also of concern.

The bidding process has been labeled “heavily flawed” due to a lack of transparency and consultation, according to ALQST, a Saudi human rights organization. A lack of engagement with stakeholders and the Saudi public was cited. The organization called for urgent action and “major and credible reforms” to mitigate potential violations. This decision has reignited debate about sporting bodies’ responsibility to uphold human rights. Attention is now on whether Saudi Arabia will implement necessary protections. Before the decision, Amnesty International and the Sport and Rights Alliance urged FIFA to halt the vote, citing human rights risks and deficiencies in Saudi Arabia’s strategy. This plea was disregarded.

David Rendell, area coordinator for Amnesty International USA, Haddon Heights

Join the conversation: Send letters to letters@inquirer.com. Limit length to 200 words and include home address and day and evening phone number. Letters run in The Inquirer six days a week on the editorial pages and online.