Making an example of Paula Deen
To the Editor:
As a child of the ‘60s and ‘70s, I grew up in a time when the “n” word was still used rather freely. Have I ever said it in my life? Yes, I have. Am I a racist? Hell no!
Now that we are all enlightened and know better, we cannot even utter the word when referring to it. That’s OK. Do I deserve to be labeled, lose my job, friends and future prospects because I am honest about having used that word in my life? Absolutely not.
Celebrity Paula Deen is being made an example of, but I don’t know what exactly the example is supposed to be. The message I am getting is “Don’t be honest and admit your past mistakes.” In that case, you can keep your example. Any company that doesn’t break ties with her is now afraid of being labeled. It’s ridiculous. Can we all keep moving forward? Everyone has done things in their past that they wish they could change. This is akin to labeling someone a drug addict because they smoked pot in high school.
Mary Chin
Lynbrook