Letters to the Editor: Jesse Young and those guys with guns
Guns at protests? Really?
Photographs of gun-toting civilians along side State Representative Jesse Young were disheartening, to say the least. What is life in Gig Harbor evolving into? Seeing the protesters reminded me of the protesting Women in Black from years ago. Women in Black repeatedly protested every week for months drawing attention to our endless wars in the Middle East. They managed to show up, rain or shine, to silently protest without any random armed citizens to protect whatever armed citizens protect.
Feeling a bit saddened by the current state of affairs, I then turned to the statement by Police Chief Busey. Aside from his recognition of the injustice done in Minneapolis and a statement about Gig Harbor Police Department policies, he also mentioned training. He pointed out annual training on cultural diversity and deescalation. Further he mentioned emotional intelligence screening in the pre-hiring process.
It occurs to me that all of the armed citizens have likely had none of this training or screening. And certainly with our unconditional right to carry guns at a public protest, I feel this escalation is more of a threat to our town than any possible benefit. Who are these guys to decide the protesters are a potential threat to our community? Shouldn’t there be some minimum levels of competency demonstrated before we wander our streets flashing guns?
Dave Mumper
Gig Harbor
Whats up with Jesse?
The front page Gateway article on June 10 regarding Rep. Jesse Young’s appearance at the BLM Rally in Gig Harbor left me questioning his motivation for being there.
In the article, Rep. Young says he held up various signs ‘that people handed him” while he was there. He seemed non-committal about the issue.
But, video of a conversation he had with the people there seemed to indicate something else. When asked if he supported BLM he said, “No” and when asked why, he said he thinks its “discriminatory.” Why then would he stand among the others supporting BLM?
Normal people who do not support an issue usually do not attend events in favor of the issue.
Betty Devereux
Gig Harbor
Jesse rides again
Sadly, I was not surprised to see a photo of State Rep. Jesse Young flanked by the heavily armed men who were disturbing a peaceful protest of the murder of George Floyd. Young’s association with counter-protesters is incongruent with his claim that he showed up to “support the call for justice and peaceful protest.” Hogwash! Those men (Young’s base), showed up to intimidate people.
Young is a darling of the NRA. He voted against prohibiting bump stocks, which make assault weapons even more deadly. He voted against prohibiting untraceable 3D printed “ghost guns.” He voted against background checks for buyers of transferred firearms. He also boasts a near-perfect record of voting against measures to protect the environment. Young has been fined twice for ethics violations and disciplined for a pattern of hostile and intimidating behavior towards his own staff. It’s WAY past time for a change: Vote for Carrie Hesch.
Sarah Newmark
Gig Harbor