This is in response to T.J. Jourian's column, "Heroification" after Reagan death overlooks legacy of discrimination," (SN 6/17).

After a friend and myself decided on a whim to drive down to Washington D.C. for the former president's funeral, I must take issue with what Jourian claims in his op-ed piece.

He asks: "How many people of color did you see? I'd guess your answer is little to none." Jourian goes on to implicate the former president (who won his second term with the largest electoral and popular vote in history) of racism.

First, while being in D.C. for the funeral, I noticed many families and individuals "of color" who were lining the streets for the funeral. There were people of African-American decent, Asian-American, Hispanic, and members of the Arabic community and many others - people of all colors, nationalities and economic backgrounds.

Just because Jourian read some guy's essay from an article he found while searching on Google, and read a book that mentioned the former president's White House staff used racial slurs, does not make the former President a bigot.

Reagan brought hope back to this country, restored this nations military strength and was the most popular president in the history of the United States. Obviously, the president of the United States can't, and won't, please everybody, but winning 525 out of 538 electoral votes certainly sends a mandate to the government, and former President Reagan sent that message.

Reagan won the Cold War without firing a single shot, and he began dismantling American's Nuclear Arsenal, something I think even Jourian can applaud.

When former Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton join the Almighty in Heaven, I'll be waiting for Jourian's scrutiny of their race policies as well. I wouldn't hold my breath.

Brett A. Gillespie
LCC student