To the editor:

As the 2024 U.S. presidential election looms, the prospect of a presidential candidate who echoes Adolf Hitler in referring to opponents as “vermin” and to undocumented immigrants as “poisoning the blood of our country” is horrifying. Equally horrifying is the disdain this candidate showed for disabled people when he openly ridiculed a disabled New York Times reporter during his campaign. Where will this stop should he be elected again? Will he adopt Hitler’s view of people with disabilities as “useless eaters”? Will he cut programs supporting older adults, such as Social Security, Medicare and food assistance, if he adopts the Nazi view of them as unproductive and, therefore, “unsuited to live.” As an older adult living with a disability, I shudder to think of this potential dictator in the White House. I urge voters to listen carefully to 45’s rhetoric and keep Maya Angelou’s advice in mind: “When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time.”

Dot Nary,

Lawrence