Dallas

To the Editors of the Crimson:

As a lifelong citizen of Dallas and as a Mexican-American, I feel I must respond to the distorted attack leveled upon my hometown by your "Unconventional Warfare" column of September 19. In his vehement efforts to criticize the Reagan Administration and the Republican Party, Mark Feinberg has slandered the city of Dallas and its residents, without reason or evidence.

Mr. Feinberg's portrayal of Dallas as a city at the racial breaking point is, quite simply, not true. To say that Dallas minorities were "on the verge of calling an all out war on the rich whites who control the city" is not only grossly inaccurate, it is, in my opinion, the most irresponsible and reprehensible statement I have seen in any newspaper in this (or any) year. Dallas" minorities have never felt compelled to resort to violent protests to achieve their demands; through hard work and cooperation, the people of Dallas have achieved a measure of racial harmony that would be the envy of many cities--including Boston. This is not to say that there is no racism in Dallas, but Mr. Feinberg's portrayal of Dallas as a segregated hotbed of racial turmoil is entirely false. As a member of Dallas minority community and having lived there for twenty-one years, I think I know more about the subject than Mr. Feinberg (apparently) learned in a week's visit.

Equally reprehensible are Mr. Feinberg's attempts to portray Dallas as a police state. The city provided the protestors at "Tent City" with basic necessities--which, in my opinion, was more than enough. To suggest or imply that the city should have provided for the protestor's every need, want or comfort is ludicrous. Dallas had the responsibility to insure only that the protestors be given the opportunity to protest; the federal judge (a Democrat) was obviously correct in ruling that the city had no obligation to further subsidize the protestors. By providing basic necessities, the city of Dallas donated far more than it was obligated to, in either a legal or a moral sense. In addition, the police in no way blocked the protestors' access to public areas; the buses provided for delegates were part of a city-wide network established for the convention, and Mr. Feinberg's contention that the protestors could not be seen or heard from the convention center suggests either biased judgement or faulty eyesight.

Mr. Feinberg also sharply distorted the issue of police shootings in Dallas. I'd like to know the names of those community leaders who called the dismissal of one officer a "cover-up"; as with the rest of this column, Mr. Feinberg is long on opinion and woefully short on facts. In fact, two weeks after the convention, after the media spotlight had ended, the Dallas police chief met with minority leaders to hammer out a more restrictive deadly force policy; a solution which satisfied all parties involved was agreed upon and is now in effect. That is the way we do things in Dallas. Rather than confrontation, Dallasites seek negotiation; rather than violence, we prefer cooperation.

Through his column, Mr. Feinberg has insulted virtually all groups in Dallas. His portrayal of the city's leadership as "patronizing rich white men" insults men and women who have worked virtually all their lives to make Dallas a better city. The leaders of Dallas have done infinitely more for their city than Mr. Feinberg will ever do for anyone, save maybe himself. His portrayal of the Dallas police force as a group of trigger-happy rednecks is an insult to the hundreds of fine men and women of all races who have served their city with pride and honor. I find particularly galling the implication that Dallas' minorities are overwhelmingly poor. I consider this extremely insulting, not only to myself and my family, but also to thousands of Black and Hispanic Dallasites who have worked hard to establish a better life for themselves.

In one area, Mr. Feinberg's column was somewhat accurate, that being the unfortunate and ridiculous comments made by some members of the Dallas City Council. However, Mr. Feinberg implicates the white members while absolving the Black members. In my opinion, there are both white and Black members of the Council that are not fit for the job. Incompetence has been, in this case, truly an equal opportunity employer.

I would encourage Mr. Feinberg to return to Dallas: I would be glad to show him my city: As the convention hoopla has long since passed, I think Mr. Feinberg would find a city far different from the one he portrayed in his column. As a city, Dallas is far from perfect, but it is filled with people who stick together and work hard to solve its problems. Had Mr. Feinberg interviewed any Dallasites, be they wealthy executives or ordinary citizens or even local ACORN members, he would have found a commitment and a sense of optimism which is so sorely lacking in so many American cities. Glitter, money or image do not make a city--people do. It is the people of Dallas and their spirit that make it, for me, one of the best cities anywhere. The people of Dallas and their spirit that make it, for me, one of the best cities anywhere. The people of Dallas certainly do not deserve the invective and falsities which Mr. Feinberg has chosen to cast upon them.

Responsible, fair and accurate reporting is the least that can be expected from a major college newspaper. Mr. Feinberg's column met none of these standards. I can only hope that better reporting and better research on the part of Mr. Feinberg, will prevent such a journalistic travesty, from happening again. John P. Leon '85