Reader appeals to Beaufort County residents to review second redistricting map option
Redistricting fairness and confusion
After listening to the recent S.C. Senate Redistricting Committee hearing, I can only conclude that Beaufort County residents advocating for the first Senate amendment to the state’s new congressional map (SA1) on grounds that the entire coastal region of the Lowcountry should be kept together in one district were misinformed or confused about the question at hand.
The original map would have separated Beaufort County from the Charleston area and placed us in SC-02, but neither of the maps being considered does so, and the second amendment (SA2 or the “whole county” proposal) serves better to keep the coastal Lowcountry intact.
SA1 groups Beaufort County with Charleston County, but it carves out a chunk of West Ashley and downtown Charleston, whereas SA2 keeps both counties whole and pairs them with Jasper and Colleton counties, which have many shared interests.
I share the concerns voiced by Beaufort County residents supporting 1SA, and I encourage them to review the second amended map, which addresses their concerns and is less likely to draw costly legal challenges.
If we want fair elections with officials who represent the interests of the people they serve, SA2 is the best option.
Justin Jarrett, Bluffton
Support for ‘Whole County Map’
I recently offered testimony before the S.C. Senate Redistricting Committee, voicing support for the second proposed Senate map for the following reasons:
-- It keeps most counties in S.C. whole;
– It keeps communities of interest together (like West Ashley);
-- It keeps Charleston County whole (and in SC-01);
– It maintains the competitiveness of SC-01;
– It keeps SC-01 a ‘coastal district.’
There’s no reason to put West Ashley or Johns Island in the same district as Columbia (100 miles away) while keeping North Charleston and downtown Charleston (two miles away) in separate districts.
Under the House map, SC-01 doesn’t have a single whole county, but parts of 6 counties. The goal should be to keep counties (and communities) whole whenever possible.
We cannot allow entrenched politicians to take away our voice by drawing partisan districts that don’t represent our community. Fight for the ‘Whole County Map’!
Lisa Savage, Charleston
Local gun control resources
In response to an earlier letter expressing concern that deaths by firearms, legal and illegal, be halted and enablers held accountable, please know that Moms Demands Action for Gun Sense in America has been organized since the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012, is structured after MADD, and has been successful all over our country in helping to mitigate gun violence.
So, if it is time for you to act, you can do two really important things:
First, join MOMS Demand Action and become a supporter and a dedicated volunteer. Their email address for those of us in the Lowcountry is lowcountrymomsdemand@gmail.com.
Second, begin now and research candidates running for local and state legislative positions. Absolutely nothing will change unless those running for and winning political office hold common sense laws for gun safety as vitally important.
The laws suggested in the writer’s letter must be supported and passed by legislators who believe in them.
There is much work to do. We can reduce gun violence and hold enablers responsible for needless loss of life. You can make the difference.
Diana Heitman, Bluffton (Former Lowcountry lead for MOMS Demand Action)
Gratitude for symphony’s home
For many years, I have been a regular Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra attendee.
Sitting in the balcony, listening to the magnificent Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 5, I was reminded again how it was all made possible.
Many years ago, realizing the town of Hilton Head was not going to build a concert hall, First Presbyterian Church HHI membership, under the leadership of then-pastor Dr. John Miller, voted to enlarge and reconfigure the pulpit area of the sanctuary to allow space for a concert. The rest is history, a home for the symphony!
We have a celebrated maestro, music director and conductor in John Morris Russell and a brilliant group of 60+ musicians which listening to brought me to tears of joy and gratitude.
Thank you again and again.
Linda Ellis, Hilton Head