WCVE didn’t make trip across the pond
As a longtime supporter of arts in this community, Central Virginia’s Public Broadcasting is thrilled to be working with the Richmond Shakespeare Company on the documentary “Shakespeare in Performance” and appreciate Style Weekly’s mention of it (Street Talk, Feb. 1).
We would like to clear up some apparent confusion, however, about who actually went to London. Members of the Richmond Shakespeare Festival, having secured funding from an underwriter, made the trip, but WCVE’s John Felton did not.
Our contribution to the documentary is in the form of in-kind services such as editing the program, airing it and promoting it. Felton has been involved in the project and has been an adviser to Grant Mudge, but only from this side of the Atlantic. A trip to England is not in our budget!
Sarah Bartenstein
Communications Director
Central Virginia’s Public Broadcasting
Don’t besmirch good works
In “Big Smooch” (Cover story, Feb. 8),singling out “Fontaine Minor, for her relentless promotion of The Dress” was mean-spirited. Shame on you!
Fontaine Minor and her family have been generous — not only with “The Dress” but also their own resources, time and talent to raise money for a variety of nonprofit groups.
I think you owe her an apology.
Cheryl Gonzales Yancey
High execution rate deserves study
The Virginia General Assembly has refused my request for a study to explore why Virginia has the second highest execution rate in the United States (Cover story, Feb. 8). What is even more frightening than the fact the Rules Committee turned down my study request is the role that the Office of Attorney General played in the defeat.
My request for an examination of our criminal justice system was simply an opportunity for us to ensure that every person who has proceeded through our court system has received unquestionably fair treatment. For the attorney general and legislators to deny that our system could possibly be improved is arrogance beyond belief.
How many innocent Virginians have we “lawfully” killed and how many more will be our victims?
Stepping back and examining our Virginia system to explore whether we do, indeed, offer the “adequate safeguards” claimed by our administration cannot damage our system.
Our resolution does not call for a moratorium on executions. However, if there is the slightest question that any of those on our death row received anything less than thorough defense and fair treatment in our Virginia courts, then a moratorium would not be unreasonable. Perpetrators of heinous crimes deserve punishment, but they deserve “just” punishment. We need to make certain that that is the case in Virginia. Unfortunately, many of our state leaders do not agree.
Dwight Clinton Jones
House of Delegates
70th District
