Hats off to Walter Tipton for showing that unlike many of the residents of Natchez, he has the ability to be objective.

He knows that as long as the proper rental procedures are followed, the Natchez Convention Center is available for multiple purposes.

Many of you have suggested that the Convention Center should not have been used for a rap concert. But I think the message that’s really being sent is that it should not be used for events that attract a young black audience.

I agree with the statement that was made in one article which stated that “ the city residents have invested millions of dollars into the convention center,” but please be aware that those residents include the black spectators who were present at the concert or the parents of those who were there. And we, black people, would like to see the center being used for our entertainment as well and not just as a meeting place for arrogant, superficial, “good ole boys’ clubs” to have brunch.

Please do not get me wrong, I think the shooting was a very unfortunate incident, but don’t say that it happened because there was a rap concert. It happened because of the misguided actions of a juvenile. One had nothing to do with the other. And if you think otherwise, then you must also be calling the black community too stupid to differentiate between rap and real life.

But even if the shooting did not take place you still would have found something to complain about. You simply could not stand that the event was going to take place and there was nothing you could do to stop it. You don’t have to like rappers or what they stand for, but when you start saying that someone cannot rent a building because of their lyrical content, you also start violating constitutional rights, and I don’t think you want to go there.

Ulrica H. Scott

Natchez resident