.jpg)
Jan. 23, 2023 Editor, The News-Gazette: Thank you for your coverage of the CARE Rockbridge Martin Luther King Jr. Parade, which was inspiring and captured the forward-looking nature of the parade and its participants. Thank you, too, for your coverage of Ben Crump’s visit to Washington and Lee University and of the MLK celebration at First Baptist Church.
I was struck by the fact that the Lee-Jackson parade got the same amount of coverage as the CARE MLK parade. This editorial decision promotes a both-sides approach that consciously elevates the Lost Cause point of view, granting it the same significance as the MLK events, which celebrate civil rights victories and signal important work that remains to be done.
The Lee-Jackson parade had half the number of reported participants, many of whom were from out of town, as the MLK parade. Lee-Jackson Day was officially eliminated as a holiday in 2020, thus reducing its importance in our state and local area. Most importantly, I hope we can let go of the entrenched, romantic notion of the Confederacy as seen on page B2 of the Jan. 18 issue of The News-Gazette, and embrace the celebration of Black people in the United States, their legacy of accomplishments, and the civil rights work before us. ELLEN MAYOCK Lexington
