An unfair allegation of racism at Marist High SchoolLetters to the Editoron October 14, 2021 at 10:00 pm

Marist High School, at 4200 W. 115th St. in Mt. Greenwood. | Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

I asked my kids, who are students at the school, and learned that many teens at the homecoming dance sat or knelt during songs they didn’t like. But they also danced to many other Latin songs.

As a parent of two kids at Marist High School who attended the Homecoming dance, I was alarmed to learn that students exhibited racist behavior by sitting during a Latin-themed song.

But then I asked my kids and learned that many sat or knelt during many songs they didn’t like. And in turn they danced to many other Latin songs.

Is this what our world has come to? We now pass judgment and find racial animus based on what songs our kids like at a dance. Please. We force them to respect and like all music? What a repressive society.

The problem is not the songs or the kid’s behavior. The problem is our desire to find — even manufacture — “racism.” It’s as if there is a demand to be aggrieved so we must invent the supply.

It is sick and must stop.

Jim McIntosh, Beverly

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Teens always protest songs

When I was in high school in the 1980s, we constantly protested songs we didn’t want to hear by sitting on the dance floor. It has nothing to do with racism. We were protesting the DJ for playing bad songs. Back then, we protested in that way against Michael Jackson songs cause he was a child molester.

Thirty-five years from now, kids will be sitting in protest against some other song; its what teenagers do. And I don’t believe for one second there were racial slurs. The only racial stereotype I read was from the girl who said “How would you like it if we kneeled to your country music.”

This is not appropriate news, this is hate news. Kneeling during a bad song and protesting is covered under the First Amendment.

Mike Soltysiak, Chicago Ridge

Happily, La Russa is no Trump

Alas, our White Sox lost the American League playoffs to the Houston Astros, three games to one. It’s a good thing Sox Manager Tony La Russa is not of like mind with Donald Trump, or he’d be claiming the games were fixed and the Sox actually won. He would be exhorting Sox fans to storm the ballpark in pointless wild-eyed protest, shouting “Stop the steal!”

Ted Z. Manuel, Hyde Park

See ya next year, fellow Sox fans

So the White Sox lost to the Astros. Get over it. Let’s look back instead at all the great things the Sox accomplished in 2019 and 2021. They thrilled us with two no-hitters. They hit many homeruns and made sensational plays. Think about how that Field of Dreams game played out. It was like a movie, but in real life.

Even with all their injuries, the White Sox gave us a lot of thrills. Next year, we will be better. Well, maybe. We just don’t know. But let’s show up and see.

See ya in 2022.

Carl F Rollberg, Calumet Park

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