BRATTLEBORO — I am writing in respectful response to Dale Joy's plea for a “safe and secure” Transportation Center [“Transportation Center should be safe, secure,” Letters, Jan. 16].
I do agree with Joy's call for extending the open hours of the Transportation Center to match the hours of bus operation so that people will have a refuge from the cold and inclement weather and a place to sit if needed.
There were, however, a few of her following points that I found concerning.
I was disappointed to read that in a reference to “safety” issues she wrote, “drunks have been hanging out there and people with terribly foul mouths and smokers.” I am wondering if she has ever engaged in conversation with the people she is referring to. She might find some of the most amicable, warm, and generous folk in town if she had.
Personally, I've had some very positive experiences chatting with some of the people who are frequently there; one guy was quick to offer me food when he heard me tell my girlfriend that I was hungry because I missed breakfast that morning.
It seems that she is demonizing people and ways of life and perhaps a whole economic bracket as a perceived threat and making conclusions about people because of their habits. Swearing does not endanger anyone, and drinking in itself does not always pose a threat to anyone else.
This kind of thinking can lead to more law enforcement, which might serve to only further criminalize and disadvantage people.
I am putting quotations around the word “safety” because safety is really a matter of perception. Perhaps the people that she is referring to feel unsafe when people make assumptions about them, damaging assumptions that are probably made daily. We don't know what other people have been through.
The government constantly exploits our sense of “safety” to rationalize warring against other countries for their own undisclosed reasons. This kind of fearmongering creates a society where we are distrusting and judgmental of others.
We must all be careful when thinking about what safety really means. I think safety looks like a Transportation Center that is welcoming to everyone and doesn't ostracize anyone.