First in Freedom? NC is about to be “First in Surveillance” instead | Opinion
In response to “SBI wants license-plate scanners covering ‘all entrances and exits’ to NC” (May 15)
Highway license readers - get rid of that “First in Freedom” license plate; will it be “First in Surveillance”? How long before that database of license plate numbers, time, location, direction, will be hacked, or misused, or subpoenaed by the feds or some other state? We already have a nearly cashless economy, and that means our every purchase is tagged with time and location. Data brokers package and sell that data — our data — to whomever can pay for it. Here’s one more juicy item.
David Hopp, Durham
Museum closed on Sunday?
I visited Beaufort, NC on Saturday and was delighted that the Maritime Museum was open to the public again. It has always been one of my favorite places to visit, no matter what time of year.
The volunteers working the front desk were very helpful and friendly. But, while talking to them, I learned that the museum will now be closed on Sundays. I was flabbergasted. Museums only exist for three reasons: tourism, education, and research. Why eliminate 50% of the time most people are able and want to visit? Other businesses that depend on tourist traffic are open, so why not our museums? If there is a lack of volunteers or overhead issues, close on Monday. Was this a budget cut? Or a legislative or administrative decision?
I don’t need to explain to anyone how important tourism is to Eastern North Carolina or how underfunded our arts, history, and culture organizations are. Are we really going to give huge tax incentives to multi-billion-dollar AI Data Centers and, on the other hand, deprive our residents of hands-on experiences available only in our regional museums?
Tim McKay, Raleigh
An antidote to gun violence
I have been so disheartened watching a too familiar sight of children marching with arms forward as they leave a mass shooting, this time from a mosque in San Diego. I am a grandmother of six grandsons, ages 13-20, who have grown up with school shooting drills and school lockdowns. One grandson, a freshman at Evergreen High School in Colorado, even endured hiding in a locker room at his high school last September, just missing the shooter as he left the cafeteria.
I am so tired of it all. But, I am heartened that my church, Umstead Park United Church of Christ in Raleigh, along with seven other faith organizations, is hosting a Guns To Gardens Event on June 13. This event is not “anti-gun” but a service to receive UNWANTED guns, dismantle them, and turn them into garden tools, art, and jewelry. It will be held in the parking lot of the church at 8208 Brownleigh Dr., from 11 AM-2 PM.
Kathy Austin, Durham
Places of peace under attack
The attack on the Islamic Center of San Diego is a painful reminder that hatred against faith communities remains a real and dangerous problem. As Imam of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, I witness daily how mosques serve as places of prayer, peace, service, and human connection for people from many different backgrounds.
Tragedies like this affect more than one congregation. They create fear among ordinary worshippers whose only purpose is to seek spiritual comfort and strengthen their relationship with God. No person should feel unsafe while praying in a mosque, church, synagogue, or temple.
The Holy Qur’an teaches that saving a single life is like saving all humanity. This principle should unite people of every faith and background against extremism and violence.
Frasat Ahmad, Fuquay Varina
Legal Aid funding
In summer, 2025 state lawmakers froze the Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Account (IOLTA) funding as part of the 2025 Public Safety Act. The freeze had an adverse effect on citizens and Legal Aid of N.C. Those hardest hit include residents in rural communities. Legal Aid estimates that because of the grant freeze, about 8,000 people went without legal representation and consultation from its organization.
Moreover, Legal Aid was forced to close its doors in a few communities and reduce its staffing across the state, as the freeze held up about $6.3 million budget used to sustain offices, retain attorneys called to the work of service and practice, and provide accessibility to residents across North Carolina. The greater infraction for residents not having access to offices in their region, with reduced staff, suggests that some potential cases will be backlogged or not addressed at all as a result of the cutbacks.
In 2024, these funds secured legal representation for 3,200 domestic violence cases, as well as $5 million to help 26,000 people with information and services after Hurricane Helene. The problem is that the person needing assistance could be your loved one, a veteran, or even you.
Roosevelt Ethridge, Wilson
Paying J6ers?
As if it wasn’t shameful enough for Trump to pardon 1,600 criminals who tried to overthrow the government on Jan. 6, now he’s given himself $1.7 billion of public funds so that he can funnel money to his family and cronies. But worse, he might actually reward these J6 criminals for their actions. We are so far past the Rubicon at this point, helplessly watching in horror as this administration dismantles democracy, but this is flat-out insulting to all law-abiding, tax-paying citizens.
Jeff Shrewsbury, Durham