Displaced workers can rebuild lives
The recent job displacements in Rowan and Cabarrus counties, loss of homes and security and the realization of these changes are a difficult phase for people who have never experienced such things before.
I myself was in the same predicament in 2003 when Pillowtex closed down and displaced 4,800 local employees. We, like some of those losing jobs now, were given options to return to local community colleges for retraining, GED completion or even associate degrees. After the fact, we learned that county leaders had personally contacted Rowan-Cabarrus Community College with the news of the impending closure, and without hesitation RCCC stepped up and said it would find a way to accommodate every person who requested admission.
I recently earned my associate degree from Rowan-Cabarrus Community College and feel compelled to write to tell these other displaced workers that, although it is a challenge, when you look at the big picture, you have the opportunity to succeed and feel so ecstatic about your accomplishments. RCCC stepped up to the plate five years ago to aid the workers displaced from Pillowtex, and through the years RCCC has stayed diligent in that resolve.
I have been in your shoes and know the disheartening feeling that loss of jobs and security can bring. But things will get better as you believe in yourself and what you can accomplish.
ó Juliann C. Wood
Landis
History lessons
Some of your white readers are in a panic that President Obama might send them to “re-education” camps?
Strange, they seem to be some of the same ones who think that blacks should just forget about segregation as a non-event.
But we do have some history, don’t we?
Marginalizing American Indians; interning American citizens of Japanese descent during World War II; and segregating blacks well into the 20th century.
While the country was busy trying to blame all Muslims in the world for 9/11, the U.S. Supreme Court was busy reinforcing the notion that whites should never be punished as a group.
Oh, is that what your reader meant when he mentioned a protected group? It’s supposed to be whites?
Before people start bragging about what they’ve done for the country, they should take moment to reflect on what they’ve done to the country.
Heard the term “zero sum?”
ó Lutrell Hancock
Salisbury
The Gates furor
Have I missed the boat? I have read many an article saying the police should have left after Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates showed them his ID. What?! That only showed he was who he said he was, not that it was his house. If his neighbors didn’t know he lived there, the police shouldn’t either.
I’m sure all the burglars out there would love this. When you get caught breaking into someone’s house, show the police your valid ID so they will leave and you can continue about your business.
ó Steven W. Norton
China Grove