Considering how vocal I have been in the past with with criticism of previous The World editorials it is only right to call out a good one when it occurs. The paper rightly calls out Commissioner Bob Main on his comments last week regarding hiring a bilingual public health aide.
Let’s focus solely on why an English-only sentiment has no place in public health.
Public health departments, including Coos County’s, weren’t created to care for individuals, though that’s part of what they do. Instead, they exist to promote the health of whole communities.
As the editorial points out, disease observes no racial, ethnic, cultural or language boundaries. This is not Main’s little fiefdom where he can pick and choose how people are treated based upon his own worm’s eye view.
