Letters to the editor: Meyer bill is a step in right direction; Islamic community ignored
Meyer bill can prevent tragedies
A study published April 4 in the British Journal of Sports Medicine reported that suicide has become the second-most common cause of death among NCAA athletes — the rate doubling over the past 20 years. This topic hits very close to home following the deaths of local athletes Katie Meyer and Sarah Shulze, both of whom died by suicide while away at college.
To help address this alarming growth, California Assemblywoman Jacqui Irwin has authored AB1575, the Katie Meyer Bill, which is a step in the right direction. Having already passed through the Assembly with a unanimous floor vote it is awaiting assignment and committee hearings in the Senate.
The Katie Meyer Bill would ensure that students attending a California public college or university — not just student-athletes — have the option to select an adviser if a student is alleged to have violated code of conduct rules. Why does this matter? Regardless how strong a relationship is with the adults in their lives, college-aged students may not feel inclined to share issues happening to them now that they are “adults.” Call it pride, or independence, shame or fear, they refrain from discussing issues that may cause discomfort.
Moreover, when faced with tough, adult-sized issues, they are often ill-equipped to make rationale, long-term affecting decisions. Having access to an adviser to guide them through the complex labyrinth of university policies and procedures, a protection like that offered by the Katie Meyer Bill, is a potential stopgap or safety net against the worst possible outcome. A decision to end one’s life in moments of upset can never be undone. But we can pass and implement this law in Katie Meyer’s name to hopefully prevent more tragedy on our college campuses.
Christine Aghassi, Thousand Oaks
Islamic community being ignored
It is with heavy heart that we write this on behalf of the Islamic community of Ventura County. We have had multiple members of our community lose significant amounts of relatives in Gaza over the past few months. We have expressed our grief to the Congresswoman Julia Brownley’s staff over the past six months and many of us have written, called, and asked for a meeting with the Congresswoman with our grieving family members. Instead, the only formal response is a letter with debunked accusations of beheadings and rape. We cannot believe that this messaging went out to families who have lost loved ones. It is beyond negligent, it is cruel.
Besides the letter, we have been completely ignored and ghosted by the Congresswoman’s staff. Not that it should matter in times like these, but many of us are registered Democrat. But none of our pain seems to matter. We are not sure if it is driven by racism or cowardice, but it sure isn’t leadership. Part of being a leader is taking the tough meetings, but instead we have been ignored and told via email that the Congresswoman is very busy and that she has other priorities. We guess our family members dying using weapons delivered via our tax dollars ($3.8 billion per year) to enable genocide and ethnic cleansing, is not a priority for a meeting.
If you, like us, believe that Congresswoman’s behavior is completely unacceptable, please we urge you to call her District Office at 805-379-1779 and voice your concerns. May peace be upon the community and God bless.
Ryan and Humera Kompanik, Moorpark
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Letters: Meyer bill is step in right direction; Islamic community ignored
