Opinion | Some ‘heritage’ should stay in the past. Virginia schools should move on. (2024)

I was outraged by the Shenandoah County School Board’s action in voting to return to the name of a man who fought to be allowed to buy and sell human beings. That is not a “heritage” I think our community need honor.

I am saddened for Briana Brown, A.D. Carter and all the students who are hurt by this decision. I am thankful for her, and her fellow students’ courage and conviction in filing this lawsuit. I hope they will be successful.

Jean Clanahan Winne, Henrico, Va.

Recently, my wife and I attended a granddaughter’s graduation from George Mason University. After the emotional procession, Pledge of Allegiance and the honor guard presentation of colors, the school choir sang a robust rendition of “Home,” and two students, chosen by their classmates, gave inspiring speeches.

When the awarding of diplomas began, what I noticed most were not the graduates who somersaulted across the stage or held up banners, but the names of the graduating seniors, among them: Afzal, Bui, Crockett, Elouaradia, Harvey, Ramirez, Shamat and Yusuf. It was a reminder that, as we entered the arena, a chorus of different languages sounded around us, and we easily stood out because of our white skin.

Hearing the names of each graduate being so perfectly pronounced by a faculty member, I thought of the days of “massive resistance” in Virginia and Gov. Harry F. Byrd’s fight against integration in public schools. I thought of the land taken by eminent domain from my wife’s father for a new high school in Falls Church that opened in 1959 and that the school board named after a Confederate traitor as a gesture of their racist resistance to school integration. That name lasted until 2018, when it was replaced in an act of reconciliation.

I wondered what those school board members and Byrd would think if they could have heard Selam, Makeda, Edina, Rudaina, Yeabsta and Habib introduce distinguished guests and give speeches at George Mason. Would they admit how wrong they had been? Or would they, like the Shenandoah County School Board recently did, vote that the original name was “history not hate” and restore it to the school?

Listening to the names roll over the arena — Jose, Alexander, Ouala and Jason — I felt no threat of replacement or fear of harm. Instead, I felt pride and awe at the accomplishments of these young people, their families and their friends — and pride that their achievements took place in the country in which I was born. The cheers and shouts of joy during the calling of names might not sound like an atmosphere conducive to peaceful reflection, but, for me, it was a stirring moment that displayed the human courage and dedication of the graduates and the audience.

Our schools have not only survived but are better because of their diverse student bodies. And if our schools are better, so are we.

Roger Barbee, Woodstock, Va.

I was saddened, then revolted, that Congress members would attempt to reinstall a statue to the Confederacy, especially one with racist overtones, in Arlington National Cemetery.

My father and mother, Max and Esther Rule, are interred there. Our good friend, Franny Bielawski, is interred there. (Her husband, Mel, served in Germany in World War IIand afterward.) My good friend Randy Bryant is interred there. And a family friend who was killed in Saigon defending the U.S. Embassy, Douglas Doody, is interred there.

While about 90 percent of House Republicans voted to restore this monument, I would be curious to know how many of them have close ties to the cemetery and have a personal sense of what it means to the families and friends of those interred there. It is not a location for political games. It is a memorial to the men and women who have honorably served our country and their family members. To use the cemetery as a political game is to spit on their graves.

I myself know what it is to be spit upon by a person protesting my service to my country. I was in the ROTC program at the University of Akron when the Kent State University protests against the Vietnam War broke out. When Kent State closed, some protesters came to Akron. While I didn’t agree with the war itself, I did and still do believe in our country. I went on and served in the reserves for 20 years.

What I would really like Congress to remember is that this is a cemetery for surviving family and friends of our fallen heroes, not a political game. Those who have loved ones interred there should have the say-so as to what goes on there, not some self-serving politico with their own agenda.

Douglas Rule, Colorado Springs

While I applaud Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) and the D.C. Council for their focus on LGBTQ+ adult programs in the 2025 budget, I am concerned that the same attention and funds are not being directed to our D.C. youth.

The most vulnerable ages in this demographic — middle- and high-school students — will likely get fewer services overall than in previous years because of public school budget shortfalls. As a parent of a D.C. public school student, I can attest to the current state of nonexistent and limited resources for LGBTQ+ students. There is a lack of unisex or single-stall restrooms, coed sports options, in-school LGBTQ+ mentors and specially trained counselors, clothing and personal item lending closets, housing resources for students whose families put them out of their homes, and a system and staff in place at every middle and high school to address emotional and physical bullying in the very schools that are advertised as safe spaces.

I implore the mayor and council not to forget public school students in their LGBTQ+ community program funding now and in the future.

Jill Russo-Downey, Washington

The June 10 Metro article “Coalition seeks to delay overhaul of golf course,” on the proposed desecration of my local golf course at Rock Creek Park, sums up many of the reasons for my fervent hope that the National Capital Planning Commission will totally reject the current proposal.

I have enjoyed playing this wonderful 18-hole course, which is just a five-minute drive from my house, for nearly 30 years. The course manager, James Garvin Jr., and his excellent staff have put all the greens in use in the best condition ever. The first nine holes, which I now play three or four times a week, are in the best condition I have ever seen.

Sadly, the back nine, a classic and challenging nine holes, has been ruined by reducing it to a five-hole course. At my age of 93, given the optimistic two-year timeline projected for the work, I probably will not be able to play on this so-called improved fiasco.

I have played golf all over world, including at the famous Old Course in St. Andrews, Scotland. If its original 18 holes were restored, Rock Creek would be a gem, not a mess with a massive unused driving range and a totally unneeded clubhouse.

Donald A. Collins, Washington

Like many D.C. residents, I learned of the course’s existence only recently, even though I frequent the park often. I visited the course to see it for myself. I was amazed to find one of the most beautiful urban oases I have ever seen. Perhaps it was the abundance of birds, enormous ancient trees, a rising mist at twilight over the meadows or the chorus of frogs nearby. Certainly, one can see the need for some rehabilitation, especially removal of the invasive species the National Park Service has allowed to get out of control.

But the current plan does far more: It would destroy more than 1,100 native trees across eight acres of precious urban-forest habitat and with it, many benefits for the human and nonhuman residents of D.C. For what? A golf “theme park” with an approximately $30 million price tag catering to a tiny segment of the public? This plan is, in my view, a gross misjudgment on behalf of the National Park Service, a mismanagement of the public’s land and a violation of our trust.

Daniel Schramm, Washington