Cheryl Glass -- Driver Will Be Remembered For Her Tenacity In Fighting For Justice For Herself, Others

Editor, The Times:

I knew Cheryl Glass closely during the last year of her life. I loved Cheryl and I spent part of every day with her. Sadly, she died on July 15.

Your obituary of July 23 ("Cheryl Linn Glass; she accomplished much in a short life"), talks about her like the last six years of her life are a loss, mystery, or a tragedy.

From my point of view, Cheryl's tenacity and strength that allowed her to become the nation's only black woman professional race-car driver, carried over into her life of political activism that started when she was raped in 1991. Her struggle for justice led her to challenge the government and to stand with others who had similar problems.

You make the statement that 1994 is the last time she was mentioned in The Seattle Times. To clear up a point, Cheryl led many protests against police brutality, oppression and injustice in the past several years.

She stood with Antonio Jackson's family when he was basically lynched in Federal Way by Safeway employees and King County Police. She emceed the Seattle part of the National Day of Protest against Police Brutality Oct. 22, 1996. Last spring, she co-founded the Seattle Chapter of Refuse and Resist.

Far from the tragic solitary victim, Cheryl has been quite active during these last few years and part of an expanding community of activists.

In the later part of her life, Cheryl sacrificed a lot for her ideals - including her racing career and national celebrity. She came to see these things as less important than her fight against injustice and oppression. In her political development, she fought first for herself, later for the people of the whole world.

When she insisted on her newfound radicalism, she saw many of her former professional contacts and "friends" turn away from her. She came to understand that her former position as successful "role model" had been partly dependent on her continuing cooperation with and promotion of an unjust system.

Not many people have the strength and courage to give up career and fame in order to follow their principles. Too few can reconsider long-held views at the age of 35 and make important decisions to go in a different direction. This kind of example should be promoted, not denied.

This is what I will remember about Cheryl - her tenacity, courage, conviction, honesty, warmth and sacrifice; her fearless determination to seek after the truth, no matter what the personal cost.

I think this is far more significant than her professional accomplishments, even as great as they were. And these are the qualities she showed the most in the later "mysterious, tragic" years of her life, when her achievements did not bring media recognition and fame.

Cheryl's whole life should be celebrated. All of us dearly miss her.

Reid Swick Seattle