Proposition 1 is about fairness, inclusion, human dignity
To the Editor,
As a town of Bedford resident, I urge my fellow community members to vote YES on NY Proposition 1 this November. This crucial amendment to the New York State Constitution will expand protections against discrimination and enshrine essential rights, including the right to abortion.
There has been misinformation spread by opponents, particularly the false claim that this proposition would allow boys to play on girls’ sports teams and vice versa. Let’s be clear: Proposition 1 does not affect school sports policies. What it does is strengthen legal protections for more New Yorkers, ensuring that no one faces discrimination based on their gender identity, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, national origin, or disability. This is about guaranteeing equality in the workplace, housing, and public services, not changing sports rules.
In addition to broadening protections against discrimination, Proposition 1 includes a clause that enshrines the right to abortion in the state constitution. This is a critical safeguard in a time when reproductive rights are under threat across the country. By voting YES, we protect the right to choose and ensure that New York remains a place where people have control over their own bodies.
Proposition 1 is about fairness, inclusion, and basic human dignity. Voting YES means taking a stand for equality and reproductive freedom, ensuring that all New Yorkers are treated with respect and have the protections they deserve under the law.
Don’t let fearmongering and misinformation cloud the true purpose of this measure. Let’s make New York a stronger, more inclusive place. Vote YES on Proposition 1.
Mark Dembo
Katonah
Will proudly vote to reelect Peter Harckham for State Senate
To the Editor:
Early voting begins this Saturday, Oct. 26, in New York. As a resident of the 40th State Senate District, I will proudly cast my vote to reelect state Sen. Peter Harckham. Pete has an impressive commitment to his constituents and a proven record of accomplishments.
As a senior citizen who has lived in northern Westchester for 40 years now, I appreciate Harckham’s efforts to ensure affordability. Harckham helped pass the current state budget with no new tax increases and a continuation of the middle class tax cut. In fact, under Pete’s leadership, we have seen middle class taxes cut five times!
As a grandparent, I appreciate his commitment to young families, including tax incentives for affordable housing and the child tax credit. At the same time, he has worked to ensure a substantial increase in funding for our public schools. This increase of $210 million dollars has improved the quality of local education while helping us avoid huge property tax increases and keeping our schools strong. Under Pete, the senior property tax exemption has doubled.
Pete has delivered $30 million to the 40 municipalities in District 40, including $8 million to first responders and nonprofit service providers. He actively supports veterans, like my husband. We are safer with Pete Harckham in the state Senate. He is committed to reproductive freedom and environmental protection.
Please join me in voting for Peter Harckham for State Senate, District 40.
Susan Polos
Katonah
NY State has been ‘saving girls sports’ since 2019
To the Editor:
“Save Girls Sports” shout Gina Arena’s state Senate race lawn signs, strategically placed around NY Senate District 40 in the Hudson Valley. And yet they would be more appropriately enveloped in clouds, revealing them for the smoke screen they truly are.
The state Legislature amended our Human Rights Laws in 2019! They include gender identity as a protected class. Have we been saving girls’ sports since 2019? You see, New York state already offers protections allowing high school athletes to choose which teams align with their gender identity. Arena is creating a solution in search of a problem.
In a recent interview, when asked whether she could provide examples of transgender students seeking to play on a school sports team, Arena responded she had not heard of anything yet. That would be five years of no examples.
Her position is a thinly veiled, cynical example of fear mongering to scare supporters into both voting for her in the upcoming election against state Sen. Pete Harckham and against the Equal Rights Amendment, Proposition 1.
Sen. Harckham believes in these common-sense civil rights protections all New Yorkers deserve. What Arena is really doing is campaigning against abortion rights and reproductive health care, something New Yorker’s support by huge margins. Prop 1 closes loopholes in the state Constitution to make sure New Yorkers won’t be discriminated against. It includes access to reproductive health care, protects older citizens, people with disabilities and the LGBTQ community.
Not only is Pete Harckham a champion of women’s reproductive rights, but he’s also been a huge supporter of climate protections and helped to pass some of the toughest climate laws in the nation. He’s increased funding for law enforcement and many other initiatives that have helped make the Hudson Valley cleaner, safer and cheaper. He has been an exemplary public servant.
A vote for Gina Arena is a vote against equal rights and a vote against a woman’s right to choose. Where Arena is concerned, it would be a mistake to choose anything other than Pete Harckham and Prop 1. It’s the easiest decision we can make this election season.
Alan Levy
Brewster
Both the GOP and DNC are prioritizing party over country
To the Editor:
We are all suffering becauseRepublicans and Democrats are prioritizing party over country instead of considering what is best for all of us.
Sadly, the political system in the United States is filled with hatred and mistruths, which come from the top down.
Canvassers tell lies to scare voters into voting a certain way.
Republicans think Democrats are 100 percent wrong in their political beliefs and Democrats think that Republicans are 100 percent wrong in their political beliefs. There is no dialogue or common ground between the two major parties.
Political commercials often contain untruths. Images of politicians are distorted. There are far more negative ads about political rivals than positive ads about politicians themselves.
As soon as local political signs are put in the ground, they disappear in the middle of the night.
After the 2020 elections there was a violent assault on the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to stop the counting of Electoral College votes on Jan. 6, 2021. Police officers died in the aftermath of this unprecedented violence associated with United States elections.
All Americans suffer due to the political hate and violence. We have to step back and put country over party. This should include starting a dialogue which is not filled with hate and loathing but is a constructive dialogue that allows us to hear and contemplate what other Americans are thinking. We then have to look for common ground between our political parties and act accordingly.
Let us try to communicate for the sake of our country and especially for the sake of our children. Ask yourself this question: Do you want your children to grow up associating nothing but hate and violence with the politics of this country and risk becoming hateful themselves? Do you want your grandchildren to do the same? If your answer is yes, the hatred and violence associated with today’s politics will continue for the generations to come.
Emily Siegel
North Salem
Thanks to The Recorder for helping make Library Fair success
To the Editor:
On behalf of the Lewisboro Library, I want to thank The Recorder for being the official media sponsor of this year's Lewisboro Library Fair, with a donation of advertising space. We had a tremendous turnout for this year’s fair, making it a big success — and you helped make that happen.
The fair is the library's largest yearly fundraising effort, with all proceeds going directly to the operating fund. In doing so, we serve as a community hub, providing educational, cultural, recreational and civic engagement opportunities to all visitors in a welcoming environment. As a result of the fair, we were able to attract a large number of new residents, new library patrons and raise awareness of the library’s comprehensive services.
The Recorder’s sponsorship was acknowledged on social media, our website — as well as on the huge welcome banner at the fair! We hope that the recognition you receive will bring even greater success to you and the paper.
We so appreciate your support of this wonderful community event. We look forward to your continued involvement with our library and the fair.
Cindy Rubino
Director, Lewisboro Library