By Paul Ford
Chad Thornton writes in in to show support, and emails the city of Pittsburgh.
Rachel,
I read your disheartening and troubling story on Ftrain. I send an email to
the Mayor's office to express my concern, and they claim that they're
looking in to it. Below is a copy of the email I received from them,
followed by my original email - you might be hearing from somebody, so I
wanted to let you know in advance.
Police brutality is an ugly abuse of power, and it sickens me how prevalent
it is in the U.S., not to even mention abroad. Please keep me updated as to
how things are proceeding, and let me know if there's anything else I can
do.
From: Chad Thornton
Sent: Friday, March 28, 2003 10:45 AM
To:
Dolores Hanna
Subject: Mayors Service Center Request Form
[Thornton's address and phone number erased]
Your Comments=Hi, I just read a troubling story about recent police
brutality involving Pittsburgh's finest. It can be found here:
http://ftrain.com/pittsburgh_rachel.html
Could someone from the Mayor's office please contact the author of the story
to verify its credibility? If it is true, could you please tell me what
actions are being taken to prevent further incidents?
It concerns me greatly to see police officers abuse the privileges given to
them to use as peacemakers. It is *not* the role of police officers to make
personally-motivated attacks on public citizens due to their own beliefs.
Their role is to uphold the law, and to do so with respect and dignity. The
above article suggests that this hasn't been occurring.
Thanks for reading, and I look forward to your response.
Chad Thornton
Local citizen living in Friendship
PEEK
Ftrain.com is the website of Paul Ford and his pseudonyms. It is showing its age. I'm rewriting the code but it's taking some
time.
FACEBOOK
There is a Facebook group.
TWITTER
You will regret following me on Twitter here.
EMAIL
About the author: I've been running this website from 1997. For a living I write stories and essays, program computers, edit
things, and help people launch online publications. (LinkedIn). I wrote a novel. I was an editor at Harper's Magazine for five years; then I was a Contributing Editor; now I am a free agent. I was also on NPR's All Things Considered for a while. I still write for The Morning News, and some other places.
If you have any questions for me, I am very accessible by email. You can email me at ford@ftrain.com and ask me things and I will try to answer. Especially if you want to clarify something or write something critical. I am
glad to clarify things so that you can disagree more effectively.
Chad Thornton Replies to Rachel Lange
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