Honor the Americans who died defending Democracy

Dear Editor:

I was in the Peace Corps in Guyana, South America, from 1969-1971. Guyana had elections, but everyone knew they were fixed. The U.S. didn’t care because Prime Minister Forbes Burnham was acceptable (not a Socialist like Cheddi Jagan, who was kicked out by the British).

Serving in the Peace Corps at age 21 gave me more of an education than I thought I would get living in a developing country. I found out that the reason no more Peace Corps volunteers were coming was that Burnham didn’t appreciate Peace Corps volunteers demonstrating against the Vietnam war in the capital city. He was afraid that the Guyanese might start thinking that they had a right to protest against their government.

Yes, you will have to make the effort to find out where and when you can vote, whether early or on Election Day, or send in an absentee ballot. Yes, you also have to make the effort to cut through the lies and exaggerations that some candidates use to try to confuse you. But as a poster said, democracy is not a spectator sport. Every politician knows how to count votes. Any district where few people vote will be a district that gets little from that politician who knows that they can do (or not do) whatever they want. And honest politicians do so much work, so why not acknowledge that by taking the time and effort to vote?

We have elections this time with candidates whot are very different, so get out and help elect your candidates of choice. I remember that a winner, I think in Westchester County, was given the humorous nickname “landslide.” He had won by one or a few votes. So yours might be the vote that elects your candidates.

People still die in other countries trying to be able to choose their government. Let’s honor the Americans who died defending our democracy by voting in person or absentee. All those efforts in other states to suppress the vote shows how powerful the vote is.

Andi Weiss Bartczak Gardiner, N.Y.