Norton Lovold, Bismarck

I returned to North Dakota in 2004 and it was not the state that I left in 1972. The general politics of the state became distrustful of outsiders, fear and distrust of people of color, fear of the LGBT+ community, love of guns and not a state where it was welcoming to anyone living on the margins.

One of the things that was really disturbing was the rush to take away health care options for women. It was initially a mystery to me then it dawned on me that North Dakota media was dominated by the advent of 3 hours daily of Rush Limbaugh and in the ’90s the arrival of 24 hours of Fox News. When I looked around at any given venue, I saw Fox Television at the gym, at hospital waiting rooms and any given restaurant or bar. So, it solidified my understanding of how easily people can be brainwashed into a belief system.

I always knew that Fox News is not an unbiased news station, but it is a deliberate propaganda machine that has worked extremely well in creating general fear and distrust. I am saddened that so many people do not want to understand the plight of poor people or gay people or women who have limited options when considering child-care. Now the new rush is on to make sure future generations have even fewer options for learning about race or gender considerations, so they can be as paranoid as their parents.

I hope they will wake up to the fact that not all multi-racial people commit crime and that women need to have choice and that gender challenged people need community support. Public education needs to be supported for everyone, not just the chosen few. I am probably going to leave the state and I know many others are for the same reason.