A Hitler mask ...that’s what I was told I was wearing, to my back, by a unmasked man standing directly behind me while I was in a checkout line Sunday.

When I was in high school, our American History class, a class that all students had to take for graduation, watched the genocide of WWII on films. We saw the horror of skeletal bodies being bulldozed into open pit graves. We learned about the showers that had no drains. We learned how people segregated people because of who they were or what they looked like.

I wear a mask out of respect for others, to protect myself as best I can, and to help protect others. I, frankly, feel patriotic in doing this single act. Then, someone else took it upon himself to decide who I am and why I was wearing a mask in public, and with three little words, he tried to destroy who I am.

President Roosevelt in WWII said something very applicable to the viral invasion we are facing today,

"There is one front and one battle where everyone in the United States—every man, woman, and child—is in action, and will be privileged to remain in action throughout this war. That front is right here at home, in our daily lives, and in our daily tasks."

We already have the virus in our midst . Families have lost loved ones to this dreadful disease. In our healthcare settings, frontline workers risk their health and their very lives for others every single day. We do not need to add the infections of ridicule and intimidation to the viral spread in our community. Think before you speak, and maybe take some time to learn a little history before you warp it to a social media meme.

Sincerely,

 Elizabeth Burns

Clinton