To the editor:

As much as we would love to throw our hands in the air, cry out “They are all crooked,” and stay home on voting day, please don’t. Voting will not heal all wounds, but, despite Citizens United, it does make a difference.

One of the darker chapters in American History is when WWI veterans, profoundly scarred by the Great Depression, hopped freight trains, drove dilapidated jalopies, or hitchhiked their way to Washington, DC, to ask for a $ 1,000 bonus payment that the government had promised them. They began arriving in May and occupied empty buildings along Pennsylvania Avenue, and as their numbers grew, created their own Hooverville by the Anacostia River. These were primarily men (90%) who had served our nation in combat, and now, due to the depression, had no employment and could no longer afford homes or even food for their loved ones.

President Hoover claimed that The Great Depression had nothing to do with him or the federal government and was weary of the daily demonstrations and peaceful marches past the White House. When a couple of the Bonus Marchers threw some rocks at police officers, he saw his opportunity and sent an extremely zealous Gen. MacArthur to clear them out. Four people were killed, 2 veterans and 2 babies, one of whom was abandoned after succumbing to gas inhalation that was blanketed on the protesters.

Hoover and MacArthur, throughout their lives, both clung stubbornly to the claim that subversive elements bent on destroying capitalism were behind the veterans. There were no facts to support these claims.

Does this scenario remind you of anything occurring contemporarily? It should, since this present federal administration has tagged protesters, whether they are defending immigrants, the environment, or international law, as domestic terrorists and called for their arrest and imprisonment. The week of 6/24 saw eight of the Prairieland Detention Center (ICE facility) protesters sentenced to a combined 450 years in prison!

“The sentences handed down today make clear that Antifa terrorists who attack law enforcement and federal facilities will face swift and uncompromising justice,” said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche in a statement.

Let it be noted that ANTIFA (anti-fascist/anti-racist) is a philosophy, not an organized party, cell, or organization. The philosophy has birthed a highly decentralized array of political activism, including protests, speeches, flyer campaigns, mutual aid, and some utilizing non-violent civil disobedience. All legal forms of education and protest.

When Hoover ran for a second term, he was decisively beaten by FDR. Imperfect as our system is, we must get out and vote. It can make a huge difference.

Judith Black

33 Prospect St.

Marblehead