Article Reflected A Lack Of Humanity

To the Editor:

I am a junior at Newtown high school, and I would just like to say, that your article “Students Offer An Inside View Of Local Substance Abuse” was so morally wrong that I wouldn’t be surprised if you got hundreds of letters accusing you of a complete lack of humanity. “Alex,” who your writer Larissa Lytwyn accused of being an alcoholic and struggling with an eating disorder, was in no way respectful to Alex’s privacy. If your paper knew anything about this girl, she is extremely kind, and has done so much for our school, and for your writer to completely change what she has said to make her look like some sort of alcoholic when she is not, is completely wrong. By describing her as “captain of the Newtown High School girl’s soccer team and student government leader” in no way respects her identity, and is completely humiliating to her peers as well, who see her as such a role model.

You should really re-evaluate some certain people of your staff, who obviously are unclear about the rules of privacy and morale, because as a 17-year resident of Newtown, and a reader of The Newtown Bee, I am suddenly quite ashamed to be apart of a community whose newspaper writes not only lies, but humiliated good people in front of the entire town, and other towns as it was seen in the Danbury News Times. I am appalled that any good editor would let something of this content go to press, and you owe Alex an extreme apology.

Most sincerely,

Jordan Liker

62 Birch Hill Road, Newtown                                       April 30, 2004