I agree with Mr. Wilson ("All ethnicities blessed to live in United States," Feb. 25) that we are all blessed to live in the United States. It's precisely because of this blessing that we must jealously guard our liberties and rights for existence that is both free and dignified. For an existence without dignity makes mockery out of these hallowed words, "All men are born free and equal." With all due respect to Mr. Wilson's good will, I think he is misguided on the historical, cultural and political significances and connotations that is often vested in a "name."

It is because of these burdens that an innocent word can be the most effective weapon at exclusion and discrimination, by drawing the line in the sand segregating "us" and "them," thus robbing "them" of their dignity.

By trivializing the use of names and consoling patience in the face of direct insult, Mr. Wilson has, unfortunately, trivialized the hard-earned achievements by those at the forefront of civil right struggles preceding our generation, thanks to whose effort the blessing of the United States was finally more than hollow words. Remember, as Wendell Phillips (1811-1884) said, "Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty." To assure a dignified existence for all is but a small part of such vigilance.