Letters to the Editor: Don’t blame women for prison sex
Don’t blame women for prison sex
I was deeply perturbed by the comments from Steven Martelli and Geoff Klopp, the former and current presidents of the Correctional Officers Association of Delaware, in your recent coverage of “Sex Abuse Behind Bars.” Both men claim that the female inmates are able to coerce and manipulate the male guards because the guards are “23- or 24-year-olds who have never had sex....” suggesting the guards, rather than the inmates, are the ones who are vulnerable. The photos of the five guards who have been arrested for sexual offenses against inmates do not appear to be 23-year-olds, and while I cannot attest to their sexual experience, I doubt they are sexually naive.
This is an all-too-familiar example of blaming the victim (the inmate) for the offense of the perpetrator (the guard). Prison guards are in a position of authority, trust and power. They are not vulnerable; rather, the female prisoners are vulnerable. To blame the women for the abuse by the guards is ludicrous and perpetrates the myth that grown men have no control or responsibility over their impulses.
In order to eliminate the problem of prison rape, this culture of protecting and justifying sexual abuse by guards must be addressed and must be made unacceptable. There must be zero tolerance for such behavior. For the presidents of the officers’ union to make such statements is truly troubling.
Holly Wright
Wilmington
Code Enforcement deserves bonus
If Tom Gordon’s proposed $750 bonus will be shared by the members of New Castle County’s Department of Code Enforcement, as a former member of their ranks I can tell you, they deserve it.
The customer service staff (within Code Enforcement) is as close as you’ll get to an actual switchboard. It is this chronically short-staffed group that answers your questions, directs your calls and takes the information necessary to log your complaints into the system. From that call, the Code Enforcement Officer is assigned to pay a visit to your neighbor and inform him that the heirloom from their great-grandfather (an untagged, rusted, ‘57 Chevy) cannot remain parked in the backyard. They also respond to complaints that the neighbor’s trash isn’t being picked up or the grass is too high (above 8 inches). In the case of an abandoned property, they are the mechanism by which the County legally takes care of the property and sends a bill to the owner.
For being committed to and doing an already thankless job at times when they were understaffed by 25 percent, they deserve the bonus.
Sotir C. Sosangelis
Wilmington
Attacks on Planned Parenthood fraudulent
The stakes for women’s health and safety are higher than ever.
The most recent coordinated attack on Planned Parenthood is one more example of how low opponents of women’s health are willing to go to achieve their political ends. The people behind the videos have a track record of making totally false claims and going to extraordinary lengths to discredit the leading provider of women’s reproductive health care.
Some politicians are using this fraud campaign to advance federal and state legislation to ban safe, legal abortion and defund Planned Parenthood, leaving millions without birth control, lifesaving cancer screenings, STD testing and treatment, and other preventive health care services
This smear campaign is part of a decade-long pattern of harassment by extremists whose focus is banning abortion and preventing women from accessing preventive health care. This is a politically-motivated attack on Planned Parenthood and the 2.7 million patients nationwide that rely on its health centers for high-quality, compassionate, and affordable health care. The latest attack started three years ago with the creation of a phony “health care” company and possible violations of state and federal recording laws and tax laws.
Taking away basic health care based upon claims of dubious origin is morally and ethically reprehensible. Delawareans deserve high quality reproductive health care, and they deserve to have their decisions respected.
The Rev. David T. Andrews Jr.
Member of the Board
Planned Parenthood of Delaware
Wilmington
We should demand more professionalism, transparency under CCTV surveillance
It was great to read more excellent reporting from Esteban Parra and Cris Barrish (“Wilmington crime cameras work, but system is ‘broken’”). Is anyone else troubled by a few details in the article? It is reported that one of the Downtown Visions staff monitoring the cameras actively followed a group of people because “the way someone wears their clothing can mean they have a weapon.” Are we all comfortable with what I can only describe as an agent of the Wilmington Police tracking citizens on real-time video based on what they are wearing? (The article makes it clear that DTV is in open communication and active cooperation with WPD.) Also, the city seems very tight-lipped regarding how footage is used as evidence in prosecutions. Isn’t this public information? Although I am completely against CCTV surveillance, I have resigned myself to the fact that it’s here to stay. Considering this, shouldn’t we demand more professionalism and transparency? I am not espousing a conspiracy theory or accusing DTV or WPD of any untoward activity. However, if we are going to be put under 24-hour CCTV surveillance, perhaps we should completely understand what that means and how (or if) it works.
Robert E Vanella
Wilmington