Speak up Name suggestion

Re “Racist slurs including ‘N-word’ scrawled on historic structures at Fort Monroe” (Nov. 16): Reading about the vandalism that took place at Fort Monroe is truly heartbreaking. The fact that such crimes are still being committed in this day and age shows just how important it is for people to express their views and fight for what they believe in.

This act of vandalism does not only resonate with the Black community, it opens the eyes of others and shows them that this event spreads further than a personal experience and is part of a larger-scale social issue.

The vandals at fault should be held accountable to the fullest extent because they chose to scrawl racist remarks on this historic building. Perhaps their upbringing and environment led them to follow this path, but they acted freely in choosing to commit this act.

The June incident where vandals defaced a historic Robert E. Lee marker at Fort Monroe with “BLM” is a prime example of the backlash pattern experienced in the current racial justice fight. As justice seekers grow tired of going unanswered, crime follows to compensate for what they are fighting for.

Jasmine Barrera, Virginia Beach

Re “Newport News task force to seek out new names for 4 schools” (Sept. 16): I would like to be the first to recommend a new name for Lee Hall Elementary School. I think due to its location on Warwick Boulevard, right outside of Fort Eustis, it should be named Jonathan Dozier Elementary, honoring a fallen soldier who died in 2008. All Americans can feel good because it is nonpolitical, nor sectarian. This would give high visibility to the name of one who shall not be forgotten.

Robert L. Scofield, Portsmouth