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Trolley tracks and cobblestones emerge from the pavement in this 1937 photo of Palmetto Street off Seneca Avenue in Ridgewood. The
street lies below the elevated Myrtle Avenue Line, which now carries the M train. Send us your historic photos of Queens by email to
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letters & comments
NOTHING IN THE MAIL
BUT PROBLEMS
On Friday, Jan. 5, 2018, my sister in
Florida mailed a standard, size 10 letter
to me in Forest Hills by fi rst class
mail. On the same day and from the
same location, she mailed a fl at 9 x
12 envelope to a diff erent address in
Queens by fi rst class mail.
Th e smaller envelope, postmarked
Jan. 5, 2018, reached me a week later
on Friday, Jan. 12, 2018. Th e larger
envelope arrived in Queens on
Monday, Jan. 22, 2018, two weeks
aft er it was mailed. It contained no
postmark, only a bar code.
Proper postage, a legible label and
correct address were affi xed to the
larger, late envelope. Both envelopes
were mailed from the same location
and picked up on the same day.
Since no snowstorm or holiday
mail glut can account for this shocking
delay, I have reached the conclusion
that the postal service has a serious
problem. Th is should be investigated
immediately before mail starts
disappearing.
Dorothy Philipps, Forest Hills
THE DANGERS OF
CENSORSHIP
Imagine growing up as a child
going to a school where you did not
learn about race, ethnicity, religion,
sexuality or our country’s grave history.
Imagine having to learn these
things from the news or reading it in
the newspaper.
Censorship is stressed mostly in
family households where parents
approve or disapprove of language,
ideas and values due to their personal
views. However, over the past
few years, censorship has escalated
immensely in our public school systems.
Schools are constantly making
changes to which materials should
and should not be introduced to
students, especially with the emergence
of social conditions such as
gay rights and feminism. Many controversies
come from whether such
topics should be censored from students
or not.
According to PBS, there currently
are lawsuits against the Utah State
School Board describes how districts
censoring LGBTQ discussions are
not protecting students from harassment
and abuse. In eight states there
are set laws prohibiting teachers to
discuss homosexuality topics and
issues. Th e law makes students who
are identifi ed as LGBTQ feel shameful
and should not to be spoken of.
Th ose in favor of censorship
believe it protects students from
harm while those who are opposed
to banning certain material believe
it is violating students’ academic
freedom and diversity. Th ey believe
students should be taught categories
ranging from our history and racism
to the consequences of drug/alcohol
consumption. Students should be
taught these topics at a young age so
when they do enter the uncensored
“real world” they’re already educated.
Banning books such as “To Kill
a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee or
“Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain
would deprive students of cultural
and historical knowledge from differing
viewpoints.
Censorship doesn’t just occur in
the library but on the internet as
well. According to the ACLU, in
2013 some districts in Rhode Island
censored not only websites and certain
search engine words, but they
went beyond by fi ltering their soft -
ware to block sites designated as
“political” or “news.” In the last
month, the ACLU issued another
report just to fi nd that not much has
changed. Rhode Island schools are
continuing to block harmless websites
such as PBS Kids. Th e internet
off ers an array of educational possibilities
for students, however, at the
same time it comes with great risk
for inappropriate material as well.
It is important to educate and
protect the learning generation by
providing them with the tools and
information they need to take on
businesses and issues we will be
leaving them with. Th ey are the future
of our country and they must be educated
to take on the role of current
and future social conditions we will
face.
Amy Kamerzel, Long Island City
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views expressed in all letters and comments
are not necessarily those of this
publication or its staff .
Expanding bilingual
programs for city’s
youngest learners
BY SCHOOLS CHANCELLOR
CARMEN FARIÑA
When it comes to our children’s education, the
sooner we start the better.
An extra year of education can change the course
of a young life. Children absorb a great deal of
information in the fi rst several years of their lives
– they’re like sponges, soaking up all the words
they hear, the interactions they have, and the many
things they see. Th e learning they do in their earliest
years is the building block for success in school
and in life.
If we don’t reach them when they’re 3 and 4
years old, we’ve missed the opportunity to support
the development of important skills, particularly
the ability to learn a second language. We’ve
also missed an opportunity to bring families into
the classroom.
Th at’s why New York City has built Pre-K for All
– providing free, full-day, high-quality pre-K for
every 4-year-old. Th at means nearly 70,000 4-yearolds
are getting that critical foundation – like learning
1,000 new words, experiencing how to interact
and play well with others, and getting ready for
kindergarten. Now, we’re expanding our investment
in early learning through 3-K for All, which
will bring free, full-day education to every 3-yearold
in the city.
Th is year, there are 30 Dual Language pre-K programs,
setting some of our city’s youngest learners
on the path to success in a multilingual, multicultural
world. I’m thrilled that next year, we are
doubling that number to 63 programs that will be
available in Spanish, Bengali, Chinese, Russian and
Italian this fall across all fi ve boroughs.
In a Dual Language classroom, half of the students
in the classroom speak the language the class
is learning and half are English-profi cient. Students
receive instruction in English and a second language
with the goal of becoming bilingual and biliterate.
Dual Language classes foster a learning environment
that encourages sharing of vocabulary, cultures
and traditions.
Being able to speak and read in a diff erent language
– and understand a diff erent culture, too – is
a game-changer for our students and families. As a
fi rst-generation American who started school without
speaking English, I know fi rsthand the struggles
many of our English Language Learners face when
they fi rst step foot in a classroom.
In a global city and a global society, our next generation
of leaders – in business and in our government
– will need to know and understand more
than just one language and culture.
Dual Language education also brings parents into
the classroom. Each month, families come together
to learn what is happening in school and share ideas
of how they can better support their child at home.
Pre-K also has given tens of thousands of parents
the opportunity to go back to work while saving
money that would have been spent on child care.
Th is is a win-win for students and families.
Expanding Pre-K Dual Language education is an
important part of the work we’re doing across New
York City schools – embracing the diversity of our
students and families, making the right investments
in early childhood education, and preparing our
students for success in college and careers. Now,
more of our city’s future leaders than ever before
will get a head start on becoming global citizens.
A LOOK BACK