OTHER VOICES ERIC SMITH

RBG

As an attorney and admittee to the U.S. Supreme Court, I have listened intently to the discussions pouring in about the passing ofU.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

I have followed and admitted her career on the bench and life in the public eye for many years: “fervent determination”; “gender equity”; “social justice”; “iconic”; “intellectual giant of jurisprudence, the Constitution, and rule of law”; “generous”; “human”; “connections with everyday people”; “kind”; “funny”; “a gift”; “understandable legal writer”; “moral figure”; “temperament”; “thoughtful”; “powerful”; “architect”; “tough”; “consensus builder”; “historic stature”; “legacy”; “stoic”; “titan”; “civility”; “stately”; “strong”; and her octogenarian pop culture moniker “TheNotorious RBG”.

And her death during Rosh Hashanah has a very special meaning. During her time as a working Jewish mother, the inequities that she facedwere appalling.

Often noted as uncanny, her gender equitywork has beenaligned with the racial equity work of her predecessor, Justice ThurgoodMarshall— both initially appearing before the Supreme Court arguing a body of winning cases that led to decisions and legislation that have changed the landscape of this country.

And let’s not forget ThurgoodMarshall’s connection to Annapolis: He served as Principal Walter S. Mills’ NAACP attorney in a racial equity lawsuit brought against our school system in 1939.

Justice Ginsburg’s powerful dissenting opinions, ending with “I dissent,” have oftentimes beenmuchmore impactful than some of the majority opinions written. And the uncanniness continuesbetween thetwo as we again anticipate what type of justice will replace her.

Ald. RHONDAPINDELL-CHARLES Annapolis

Bad advice

The City of Annapolis Charter and Code Chapter 21 requires that when an appeal to the Board of Appeals is filed about a decision on a proposed development, written notification must be sent to abutting property owners and tenants, (among others) located within 200 feet of any property boundary of the project.

The city’s Planning and Zoning Department provides the appellant with a template and cover letter with instructions for the Affidavit of Notification. Recently, new notice requirementswere issued to include not only property owners and tenants but community and business associations and more. The city’s director of planning and zoning, Dr. Sally Nash, ignored a Board of Appeals edict to restore some of the adequate public benefits promised for the Eastport Shopping Center project, the Lofts at Eastport Landing apartments.

My Eastport neighbor, Heidi L. Halleck, Esq., representstwonearbyownerswhoare appealing this decision. As required, she complied with the instructions provided by the city staff, which turned out to be erroneous and outdated and did not reflect the recent changes in the City Code’s notification requirements.

But wait, it gets better. While Halleck relied on the Planning and Zoning staff’s instructions, Assistant City Attorney Joel Braithwaite, Esq., pressed for the appeal’s dismissal because she trusted and complied with the directions given to her. That Braithwaite bothered to craft an extensively researched brief pushing for dismissal of the appeal when instead he could have spent this time cleaning up the city’s notice process is a disappointment to all. It also smacks of bullying.

Our tax dollars pay Braithwaite’s salary. Why is a city representative trying to intimidate our Eastport neighbors? The residents of Eastport are fed up with the inconsistent directives and actions by City staff and officials. We deserve better! FRIEDAK. WILDEY

Annapolis

Hate

Therewas a letter to the editor ostensibly about S. Lee Caudle’s father, who was a World War I veteran. It was a genuine tribute to his or her father.

The sadness that followed was the true intent of the letter. Itwas about hate. Hate is a terrible emotion.

It is destructive and hurtful. Not to the object of the hatred, but to the source, the person who is hating.

Hate hurts the soul and can easily harm the body.

I truly hope and pray that the individual expressing this destructive emotion has purged herself and canmove on. LOUISKOSCHMEDER

Gambrills