Litter shows lack of community pride

I enjoyed the Mardi Gras festival in Albany, however, I was disappointed in the amount of garbage in the streets. Trash cans were provided, yet few took steps to put trash in or near the containers. I have been to festivals of similar size where the amount of garbage at the venue was not a factor.

I was recently in Rwanda and was struck by the beauty of the landscape, people and wildlife. What I did not see, even in a city with 10 million people, was a speck of trash. When asked, a local told me that the Rwandans are taught from an early age that trash is ugly and that tourists won’t visit or see the beauty if altered/marred by garbage. And, if they have pride in themselves, their community and nation, they would not throw trash. Tourism is up by 600 percent in Rwanda.

It is evident, not from just the trash at the festival, but all over Albany, that your citizens have lost pride in their community and failed to teach children to put trash where it belongs.

I hope next time I visit Albany, I will see a lot less trash and a lot more pride.

M.C. BROOKS

Hayesville, N.C.