Letters for Monday, Dec. 5, 2022

Racism must be acknowledged

The primary goal of health care providers should not be to judge, but rather to provide the best possible care to their patients. Many people want to work in such a demanding field because they strongly desire to do so. Health Occupations Students of America is a career and technical organization for students interested in health professions. The first international leadership conference I attended was in 2019. I had the misconception that Hawaii was well known worldwide, but when I spoke with two South Carolina girls who undervalued Hawaii because of a stereotype they had heard, I realized this was untrue. I was hurt by what they said and the questions they posed. I understood that it would be an opportunity for me to share my experiences and that we must educate ourselves before making assumptions.

Racism is a persistent problem that we will address even though this interaction isn’t specifically in a health care environment. There is a chance that the two girls I met will continue to commit such discriminatory acts. To combat racism and discrimination, we must all be aware of, name, and comprehend these attitudes and behaviors. Our own implicit biases must be acknowledged and managed. Understanding people from different cultures and communicating effectively are examples of cultural competence. Although it may appear simple, people are not born with this ability. We need to demonstrate and practice mutual respect, tolerance, open mindedness and peace. These themes need to be a part of educational curriculum and institutional policy.

Samuel Rontale

Spokane

Bias in the paper

Craig Grossman’s Dec. 1 letter (“More balance needed on the editorial page”) is a textbook example of cherry picking and confirmation bias. Reviewing his case in point of the Nov. 20 edition doesn’t even support his assertion that the S-R has a left-leaning bias. The editorials reflected concern for the creeping fascism of Trump loyalists (which is found on both sides of the center of the political spectrum) and the bulk of the letters were apolitical. The regular publishing of Theissen, Madsen, WFF, etc. also refutes his claim.

If you want an analysis involving actual data, check out mediabiasfactcheck.com, which ranks the S-R as “least biased” for its avoidance of loaded language, use of credible sources and fail-free fact check record.

Please ignore unfounded grumbling and continue to support our excellent local news source.

Michael Stanger

Spokane