Praise for Beat Making Lab

Thank you for your article on the Beat Making Lab (“Indies 2014 Arts Awards,” Nov. 12.) I love hearing again about the great work they are doing here and around the world.

I appreciated Mark Katz’s observation that youth in the U.S. and abroad living in militarized cities and countries can “transform conflict through hip-hop.” Through their videos online we can hear and see youth connecting with each other and making liberating, expressive, honest beats. Yet in the article, you described Katz as “deployed” to India, Bosnia and Serbia in his role with the Beat Making Lab. War metaphors contribute to the militarization of our societies, the very militarization that youth, especially youth of color and those in the Global South, are hardest hit by. I urge you to take more care in choosing your words; wiser folks than I have observed that those choices help determine the world we will live in.

Sarah, Hillsborough

Fracking threatens N.C.

I grew up on the Dan River in Rockingham County and have made some of my best memories on the river. My family owns a river business and relies on recreational activities for our income. After the recent coal ash spill, I can only imagine the negative effects fracking would have on families like mine that rely on the clean water. I also take pride in having access to clean well water without having to worry about filters or chemical contamination. This is what’s at stake if we allow fracking into the state.

The N.C. Mining and Energy Commission recently finalized the rules and regulations for fracking; however these rules were written to encourage industry in the state, not protect the public. The current rules aren’t going to protect our health or our water, which is why we should keep fracking out of the state entirely.

Becky Bozorth, Raleigh