Del. Ken Plum's article ("Learning From 1619," Connection, August 28) on the commemoration of the arrival in the United States of the first Africans in 1619 executes a neat pirouette (dare I say moonwalk) from his position of Feb. 2 of this year, when he agreed with the Legislative Black Caucus in the aftermath of the Governor "Blackface" affair that "Ralph Northam must resign. We must move on to the painful but essential process of healing." Cliched claptrap, of course. Del. Plum appears to have learned about 1619, but forgotten about February 2019.
Hailing Senators Kaine and Warner for "pointing out the evils of slavery" (this did not come as news to the vast majority of us), he then proceeds to highlight the "anti-slavery" posturing of Governor Northam, who, with no sense of irony, intoned: "We are a state that for too long has told a false story of ourselves...." The state, you understand, not Northam, who is handy with a can of boot polish.
Plum lists Northam's contributions in establishing a Commission on African American History Education, having earlier set up a commission to examine racial inequities in Virginia laws.There is much work to be done, Plum reminds us, and obsequiously opines that "we have a governor who is willing to provide the leadership to accomplish it." Willing?!
Principles in politics have a very short lifespan.
Harry Locock
Reston/Herndon