To the Editor:

I am an old white man, and that is a place of privilege. I am largely unnoticed and seen as a non-threatening, innocuous segment of society. People defer to me. How many times have I heard, “Sure, Gramps, whatever you say.” What could be more accommodating?

Ah, the rub. Old white manship has a downside that I have been exposed to lately. People make assumptions. When you are old, too many people assume you yearn for times past – a time when the fish eaters didn’t mix with the WASPS, the Blacks…

August 11, 2021