Dear Editor,
I pray that you are well…
You don’t know me, but I’ve been reading multiple issues of your newspaper, the Monroe Free Press every day for a week straight now.
As my envelope denotes, currently I am incarcerated (unjustly and illegally, I might add) and recently I observed an associate of mine with a big ‘ole stack of newspapers…I’m an avid reader, so I asked him what were they and he told me that they were a Monroe newspaper-the Free Press.
Being that I am from New Orleans, I presume his expectation was that I wouldn’t be interested, however, he couldn’t have been further from the truth.. I asked to read them and their dates in the summer of 2023 all the way past the point where I am right now, which is on the Sept. 14th, 2024 issue.
Up until this point, I have just been reading and enjoying the “vibe” of the paper, however, it was this specific issue that motivated me to reach out to you with an expression of thanks and gratitude, for it was in this edition that you recounted the story of your participation in the Black Youth Council and in the Civil Rights activism in the city of Monroe, La.
Though I’m from New Orleans and have never been to Monroe, I can still appreciate and am grateful for your contributions and commitment to the Struggle and your lifetime of service to your community.
While it is my personal opinion that my generation kinda dropped the ball a bit and was somewhat of a disappointment to our elders, I am still encouraged and motivated by the fact that even now, with the continued publication of the Free Press and your community agitation and activism, you are still on the battlefield and putting in the work.
Again, Mr. Wright, you don’t know me and there is a high probability that we will never meet one another, but if no one else has taken the time today to tell you Thank You and that you are appreciated, please allow me to be the one to do so.
Thank You, sir. You are both an icon and inspiration and it is my pleasure to have met your acquaintance by way of your articles, editorials, and the entire Monroe Free Press.
Your community has been blessed to have you in it.
May God of Abraham, Isaac, and our Elders continue to bless you and yours..
Stay Safe, Locked & Loaded, as your article closed with!
Sincerely Yours in the Struggle I Remain, R. Ben Joseph
