Dear Editor:
I have followed with dismay the response - or lack there of - to Missouri State Rep. Warren Love's Facebook post about the vandalism of a Confederate statue in Springfield this past August in which he wrote, "This is totally against the law. I hope they are found & hung from a tall tree with a long rope."
While Love claims his comments were just "cowboy jargon" such as "howdy" and "giddy-up," anyone with a lick of sense can easily recognize he is calling for a lynching of the vandals. Love admits "that I made a statement that was taken out of context and offended certain people that took it to mean something that it did not mean. And for that I am sorry." Yet Love used the very definition of the word lynching: to put to death by hanging for an alleged offense without a legal trial. Why would a Missouri state lawmaker call for the punishment by death of the vandals without a trial? Love's son explained, "Dad is very into his history and the history of our country. The choice of words obviously wasn't perfect." No, the words are far from perfect but have been used with impunity for hundreds of years in the South to intimidate and terrorize African-Americans.
Love's call for a lynching of the vandals demonstrates a horrific disregard for the rule of law and he can make such statements free from worry of any negative consequences. Indeed, the House Ethics Committee considered sanctions against Love and voted to issue a reprimand and to strip him of his committee assignments. Believing he is somehow above the ruling of the committee, Love was allowed to reject the reprimand. Speaker Todd Richardson, who donated to Rep Love's campaign, also failed to administer any punishment.
Rep. Jay Barnes implied in his recent op-ed, there is an understanding in the House that if you scratch my back, I will scratch yours. "Instead of doing what is right, the path of convenience and personal advantage is taken instead." To do nothing is to normalize this kind of behavior by Missouri state lawmakers and white men in general. I believe that the Missouri lawmakers should tell Rep. Love to "get along little dogie" and demand his immediate resignation.