Letters: Centre County’s representatives show commitment, results; ‘It happened here’

Centre County’s representatives show commitment, results

Ed Perry’s opinion of our district’s leadership is so wrong. In his June 21 letter to the editor he states, “and the reason (state Sen. Jake Corman and state Rep. Kerry Benninghoff) don’t want redistricting is that the current system allows them to run mostly unopposed ...”

Sorry Ed, the reason they still represent us is based on their commitment, experience and results. Voters have always crossed party lines to reelect these two men as our leadership. You just can’t slice the pie differently to achieve your result.

I’ve lived in the district for over six decades and can’t remember more consistency in our Harrisburg representation. Obviously, county voters must feel the same as we’ve watched both these men rise to top positions in the Pennsylvania General Assembly.

‘It happened here’

On May 31, hundreds of protesters chanted, “No justice, no peace” and “I can’t breathe” while blocking Beaver Avenue. On June 7 they did it again, blocking the intersection of Atherton Street with College and Beaver avenues, and again June 14 on Allen Street. Their presence added to the nationwide unrest and anger over four Minneapolis police officers’ killing of George Floyd.

For many in the crowd, the injustice is not an abstract happening-elsewhere idea. It happened here.

On March 20, 2019, the State College police were called to serve a mental health warrant and instead killed the person they were charged with protecting. Osaze Osagie was his name and it’s just as important to say it as George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade and the countless others who have died at the hands of police.

Protest leaders called for officer accountability, divestment from police spending and investment in community-building resources like mental health services. We cannot pretend that the criminalization of Black people by militaristic police and a systemically prejudiced incarceration system exists in a fictional elsewhere. It happened here to Osaze. It’s still happening now.

I ask Mayor Filippelli to make good on the statement he released on May 31, that he “speak out and take appropriate action against these inequities and injustices.” We know Derek Chauvin’s name. Tell us who Officer 1 is, the one who took Osaze’s life yet faced no consequences and walks among us. Mayor Filippelli, what are YOU going to do?

Let’s cheer for the governors

The movement to change the nickname for Bellefonte High School from the Red Raiders to something else should be seen as an opportunity, not an attack, on a pseudo-sacred symbol. Let’s face it: It’s a boring name.

My high school’s nickname is the Blue Raiders. If you search Wikipedia for “high school raiders,” you will get hundreds of hits (although not all are high schools).

I propose that the Red Raiders become the Bellefonte Governors. It is a unique name and no other school has such a claim to fame as being located in the home of seven governors.

Keeping Maeve’s chickens

My Name is Ella. I’m 9 years old and live in Huston Township. I have chickens, and so does my best friend, Maeve. But College Township won’t let her have chickens; that makes me mad. Because I love chickens, and so does Maeve. She loves those chickens: Waffles, El, Purple, Banana. She treats them like they are queens, and they ARE queens. And she takes such good care of them, she plays with them a lot! And I know it would break her heart if College Township took them away. I don’t want her to feel that pain of something you love being taken away from you. Whenever I FaceTime Maeve and I see her chickens, my heart goes nuts! They are so cute! I love those chickens, but Maeve loves them even more. On June 4, Maeve talked to the township at their meeting, and she said they are not farm animals, they’re pets. Chickens aren’t just for eggs, if you make the right bond, they will love you forever. And I know Maeve already made that bond with all of her chickens. They love her, she loves them. But the township is unwilling to change their mind. When I heard that it made me so mad. Maeve should have the right to have chickens, her neighbors also love those chickens. College Township, I hope you hear this and change your mind. Please don’t break my best friend’s heart. If you do, it will break mine too.