Letters: Justice for Alan Turing?

Re “Gay British scientist gets posthumous royal pardon,” Dec. 25

Alan Turing, the British codebreaker who committed suicide in 1954 after being convicted of having sex with another man, was tortured both emotionally and physiologically, all for being gay.

Reza Farahan, an openly gay man from the reality show “Shahs of Sunset” who is originally from Iran, minced no words when he recently stated that in Iran, gays are faced with two choices: remain in the closet or commit suicide.

Unfortunately, back in the day, Turing chose the latter.

As fellow human beings, we should be doing everything to uplift, not denigrate and condemn, one another. Why can’t we simply live and let live? And why must we insist that everyone conform to the standards set by the majority?

Although the posthumous pardon by Queen Elizabeth II won’t do Turing any good, it is an acknowledgment that the treatment he endured during his lifetime was brutal and wrong.

JoAnn Lee Frank

Clearwater, Fla.

You must be kidding: The queen has exercised her royal “prerogative of mercy” and granted Turing a pardon. What silliness.

It seems clear to me that the British government should be the one seeking the pardon. Turing was a hero, having played a crucial role in defeating Nazi Germany, and what was done to him is something to be ashamed of.

The British government should be seeking forgiveness for what it did to him, not offering him a pardon.

Ted E. Thompson

Culver City

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