I need to respond strongly to Eileen Reynolds’ Aug. 29 letter suggesting that syndicated columnist Leonard Pitts “find another field of employment – hopefully far away.”

As a citizen trying to become aware of the white privilege I enjoy that has been baked into American culture for centuries, I consider Ms. Reynolds’ letter as Exhibit A in a raw display of myopic, entitled cluelessness.

Of course Pitts’ columns are often (though not exclusively) about race. Of course they make us uncomfortable – and that’s the point! Our country is long overdue to wake up to the disparities between white experience and that of people of color. The insidiousness of racism now playing out in our streets – yet again – will continue until white people actively demand desperately needed systemic change.

My husband and I have enjoyed Leonard Pitts’ well-crafted columns for years, and we are proud subscribers to a paper that continues to offer his perspectives to our oh-so-Caucasian population. Ms. Reynolds’ arrogant declaration that she is “tiring” of his thoughtful writing and that it is “not representative of how the majority feels” is itself a reflection of her own tone-deaf ignorance.

Kym Dakin
Yarmouth

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