Note: The Lawrence Times runs opinion columns and letters to the Times written by community members with varying perspectives on local issues. These pieces do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Times staff.
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As a Lawrence attorney and community member for the past 13 years, I’m thrilled that Christina Haswood has stepped up to run for election to the Kansas Senate in my district. I see her doing the work to make phone calls and knock doors to talk to voters, and I know she’ll be a fantastic senator. I admire how she has empowered young people in our community — by hiring and paying them to intern on her campaigns, helping to build skills and interest in government and politics.
As the operations director for Laura Kelly’s 2018 campaign against Kris Kobach, I’m disappointed that Gov. Kelly chose to endorse Christina’s opponent. But the governor has never lived in Douglas County, and her endorsement announcement does not claim to be based on what’s best for Douglas County. I believe the governor’s Middle of the Road PAC endorsement is based on old-school loyalty and that the incumbent is most likely to vote the way the governor wants a legislator to vote.
Christina is not the Middle of the Road candidate. She is the more progressive candidate, and she’s the one who gets things done. I will not be voting for the Middle of the Road candidate. I am choosing to vote for the candidate who is heading in the direction of progress and justice. I hope you’ll do the same.
— Rebekah Gaston (she/her), Lawrence, KS
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More Community Voices:
Letter to the Times: City should create oversight committee to guide pool renovation project, rebuild trust
”Our petition’s 1,764 signatures, our supporters’ 75 letters, and our research into the extensive flaws in the (pool renovation) community engagement process all indicate that the previously proposed plan did not reflect public opinion,” Holly Krebs writes in this letter to the Times.
Shawn Alexander: Say his name – Fred Harvey Smith (Column)
”Racial violence has been omnipresent in American history, and in far too many of the incidents, the perpetrators of the crime are acquitted or not even brought up on charges. When I think of such cases I am often haunted by the heinous murder of Fred Harvey Smith here in the land of John Brown in May 1936,” Shawn Alexander writes in this column.
Letter to the Times: Are veterans’ sacrifices for democracy worthless?
”My father (Navy), mother (Army), and many other family members served our country in World War II. … They gave of themselves, in countless ways, to stop the spread of authoritarianism, suppression of freedoms and tyranny of the many by the few,” Sandy Sanders writes in this letter to the Times.
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