We-Ha.com welcomes Letters to the Editor from the public, including endorsements, but letters submitted by political candidates within 60 days of an election will not be published. Please provide your name and town, as well as your phone number at the end of the letter. Phone numbers will not be published but are required in case verification is needed. Please submit letters to [email protected].

To the editor:

West Hartford is largely a very fortunate community. So much we experience living here is not just positive, but an actual pleasure, like the enjoyment I get from seeing people out & about, especially the dog walkers. They probably have little idea how much joy it gives me to watch the dogs!

Driving around, seeing how much effort the town, businesses, and residents put in to making our community look nice – not over the top fancy, but nice and comfortable and cared for. When you live someplace that shows little care and a sense of hopelessness, there’s a clenched up feeling inside that you’re not even aware of – until it goes away and you can breathe. That’s what moving here was like for me – being able to breathe.

I don’t take We-Ha & the diversity offered here for granted, which is why it’s so important that we maintain that openness, that sense of caring. I cannot in good conscience vote for ANYONE who hasn’t spoken out loudly and decisively against the destructive actions and policies of 45 and the current GOP leadership. Silence in the face of active, malevolent racism, white nationalism, anti-Semitism, extreme misogyny, homophobia/transphobia, deliberate sabotage of health coverage, tax proposals disproportionately benefitting the wealthy at enormous cost for the rest of us, attacks on our public education, disregard for our environmental health & safety – these & more deserve attention, publically spoken opinion, and leadership. Any candidate who is silent on these issues does not deserve my vote or yours.

Roberta Echelson
West Hartford