Media is everything. It permeates every facet of our lives. It affects what we wear, eat, how we perceive ourselves and who we vote for. Progressively, all elections, from the low level city and town elections to the Presidential elections have become more of a circus of political jargon and smoke and mirrors than platforms that engage real issues. Media is partially to blame for this.
 I was greatly disappointed at the New Register’s front page placement of the Harp slumlord article. I found Kermit Carolina’s comment which slandered Matthew Harp, revolting. In the past, every time Senator Toni Harp has run for political office, the newspaper and her opponents drag up her (late) husband’s business practices. This is a joke.
Senator Harp’s reputation as a policy maker and a leader is impeccable. Her son Matthew returned home when his father was ill and has spent the last two years trying to revive his father’s business. This is not a business he asked for, but one he inherited. To label him as a “slumlord” is not a truism reflective of his nature, but a statement about the poor character of the persons spewing such negativity. Let’s not deflect the attention away from what’s important by creating diversions that only aim to tear down and perpetuate mistruths and untruths. Let’s focus on the issues at hand; crime, job creation and education. These are the issues that will define or decline the city of New Haven in the next few years and these are the issues that should be talked about. Our city needs healing, not hate mongering subterfuge.
Crystal Emery
Executive Director/Producer
URU, The Right to Be Inc.
New Haven