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  1. #1
    Senior Member Darlene's Avatar
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    Immigration protests: Is a backlash building?

    Immigration protests: Is a backlash building?

    (commentary)

    Posted by: McQ on Friday, March 31, 2006

    Victor Davis Hanson discusses the recent pro-immigration (or were they pro-illegal immigration?) rallies in various cities, but particularly in southern California. He then asks:
    If the demonstrators thought that they were bringing attention to their legitimate grievances—the sheer impossibility of deporting 11 million residents across the border or the hypocrisy of Americans de facto profiting from "illegals" who cook their food, make their beds, and cut their lawns—they seemed oblivious to the embarrassing contradictions of their own symbolism and rhetoric. Most Americans I talked to in California summed up their reactions to the marches as something like, 'Why would anyone wave the flag of the country that they would never return to—and yet scream in anger at those with whom they wish to stay?' Depending on the particular questions asked, polls reveal that somewhere around 60-80% of the public is vehemently opposed to illegal immigration.

    It also points, at least in my opinion, to an underlying current which was present in the demonstrations. Sure, there were many who were simply there to ask they be given some sort of legal status so they could continue to work in the US. However other groups were at work as well and they're a part of what is loosely known as the "reconquista", the Mexican dream of retaking the Southwest.

    Among the more specific groups are MEChA and La Raza.

    MEChA is described as an anti-American student group who wish to liberate the mythical Aztlan (which is essentially Mexico and the American Southwest):
    The acronym MEChA stands for "Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan." or "Chicano Student Movement of Aztlan."

    MEChA is an Hispanic separatist organization that encourages anti-American activities and civil disobedience. The radical members of MEChA who refer to themselves as "Mechistas," romanticize Mexican claims to the "lost Territories" of the Southwestern United States — a Chicano country called Aztlan. In its national constitution, MEChA calls for self-determination by its members to liberate Aztlan. MEChA's national constitution starts out: "Chicano and Chicana students of Aztlán must take upon themselves the responsibilities to promote Chicanismo within the community, politicizing our Raza with an emphasis on indigenous consciousness to continue the struggle for the self-determination of the Chicano people for the purpose of liberating Aztlán."
    You can read their "philosophy" here. A brief snippet:
    1) We are Chicanas and Chicanos of Aztlán reclaiming the land of our birth (Chicana/Chicano Nation);

    2) Aztlán belongs to indigenous people, who are sovereign and not subject to a foreign culture;

    3) We are a union of free pueblos forming a bronze (Chicana/Chicano) Nation;

    4) Chicano nationalism, as the key to mobilization and organization, is the common denominator to bring consensus to the Chicana/Chicano Movement;

    5) Cultural values strengthen our identity as La Familia de La Raza; and

    6) EPA, as a basic plan of Chicana/Chicano liberation, sought the formation of an independent national political party that would represent the sentiments of the Chicana/Chicano community.
    It mentions "La Familia de La Raza", or La Raza for short.

    A brief description of "La Raza":
    La Raza" (The Race) is a broad term which refers to those whose ancestry is indigenous to the area of Mexico (or "Aztlan"). MEChA members refer to themselves as "La Raza" or "Raza," but the term itself is used to indicate camaraderie among those in different organizations with the same objectives. There are a number of organizations who consider themselves to be La Raza.

    The most visible of these groups are MEChA, The Brown Berets de Aztlan, OLA (Organization for the Liberation of Aztlan), La Raza Unida Party, and the "Nation of Aztlan" to name a few. Although the activism of these organizations vary from somewhat radical to extremely radical, they share the same objectives, the "liberation of Aztlan." Each follows the Raza manifesto "El Plan de Aztlan (sometimes called "El Plan Espiritual de Aztlan"). The Nation of Aztlan, tied to La Voz de Aztlan disseminates the exact same propaganda that MEChA spreads including antisemitic propaganda. Believers in the Aztlan legend insist upon the indivisibility of "La Raza" and their common goals, one of them being the need to abolish the border between the U.S. and Mexico. There is a myriad of Raza college newspaper. Some are El Popo, Aztlan News, Chispas, Gente de Aztlan (UCLA), Voz Fronteriza (U.C. San Diego), La Voz Mestiza (U.C. Irvine) and La Voz Berkeley. It is not uncommon for the writers of these publications to refer to the U.S., as "AmeriKKKa."
    From the introduction to "El Plan de Aztlan":
    In the spirit of a new people that is conscious not only of its proud historical heritage but also of the brutal "gringo" invasion of our territories, we, the Chicano inhabitants and civilizers of the northern land of Aztlan from whence came our forefathers, reclaiming the land of their birth and consecrating the determination of our people of the sun, declare that the call of our blood is our power, our responsibility, and our inevitable destiny.

    We are free and sovereign to determine those tasks which are justly called for by our house, our land, the sweat of our brows, and by our hearts. Aztlan belongs to those who plant the seeds, water the fields, and gather the crops and not to the foreign Europeans. We do not recognize capricious frontiers on the bronze continent.

    Brotherhood unites us, and love for our brothers makes us a people whose time has come and who struggles against the foreigner "gabacho" who exploits our riches and destroys our culture. With our heart in our hands and our hands in the soil, we declare the independence of our mestizo nation. We are a bronze people with a bronze culture. Before the world, before all of North America, before all our brothers in the bronze continent, we are a nation, we are a union of free pueblos, we are Aztlan.
    You should make it a point to read the rest.

    One common theme you'll find among the organizations within this movement is a strong socialist leaning. For instance, in the list of organizational goals:
    2. ECONOMY: economic control of our lives and our communities can only come about by driving the exploiter out of our communities, our pueblos, and our lands and by controlling and developing our own talents, sweat, and resources. Cultural background and values which ignore materialism and embrace humanism will contribute to the act of cooperative buying and the distribution of resources and production to sustain an economic base for healthy growth and development Lands rightfully ours will be fought for and defended. Land and realty ownership will be acquired by the community for the people's welfare. Economic ties of responsibility must be secured by nationalism and the Chicano defense units.
    And Anglos aren't the only targets of their hate. Evidence of antisemitism also exists.

    All of that to provide background to Hanson's next point:
    To understand the backlash to all this that is rising, think back to the 2003 California recall election for governor. When it was clear that Gray Davis had lost public support and was finished, for a while it looked as if Democratic Lieutenant Governor Cruz Bustamante might well be a shoo-in. After all, California was a solidly blue state, and the Republican challengers, actor and political novice Arnold Schwarzenegger and the unknown State Senator Tom McClintock, would probably split the minority Republican vote.

    But then Bustamante very quickly began to scare the electorate. He was unapologetic about his past MEChA (Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán) ties, even when that otherwise irrelevant radical student group's mottos and separatist constitution found their way into the public discourse. He tried to redefine his unsavory fund-raising with the Indian gaming industry as a point of ethnic pride, promised driver's licenses for illegal aliens, and then aired seemingly suicidal television ads showing him shouting to Latino crowds in a sea of waving red flags.
    The Aztlan movement is certainly a dream of a certain part of the protesters we saw this last week. It is they, most likely, who were flying a Mexican flag over an upside down American flag. It was they who were hostile and provocative. And it is they who are responsible for the brewing backlash against illegal immigrants.

    Something of the same backlash may soon follow these demonstrations. There are over 300 million resident Americans, and the vast majority of them are citizens. Had the demonstrators marched chanting "God Bless America," confined their flag waving to Old Glory, and expressed thanks to a magnanimous United States that gave them a second chance when a corrupt Mexico has precluded their first, then they would have won public support.
    All true. Think of the psychology of "America". We root for the underdog, we support those who want to make something of themselves and we're sympathetic to those who want to work hard and support their families. But we have little patience with those who denigrate our flag, our culture or our country. And all of those things were present in the immigration protests. Not overwhelmingly by any stretch, but certainly visible enough.

    The fantasy of Aztlan isn't going to come to fruition. Ever. But those who militantly support it hurt those who are simply asking for some sort of recognition of their status. Upside down American flags subordinate to the Mexican flag are just the type of images that can destroy any reasonable chance of reform that would be favorable to those who are here illegally.

    In cases like this I'm always reminded of Admiral Yamamoto's words following the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor. "I fear all we've done is to wake a sleeping giant and fill him with terrible resolve". In some ways the illegal immigration situation is coming to be viewed as a cultural Pearl Harbor. Those who are interested in actually becoming a part of that culture, whether here legally or illegally would be wise to distance themselves from those who harbor the fantasies of the MEChA and La Raza. At some point, if this sort of disrespect continues, the sleeping giant will awake, and Washington DC will indeed quake and react. That reaction may not be the most reasonable in the world depending on what mood the majority of the country is in (a recent example is the Dubai port deal).

    I want to see a resonable solution to the problem of immigration. Fanning nationalist fires from the fringe and pissing off the majority of the American population, as many of these protesters have done, is not the way to accomplish that.

    http://www.qando.net/details.aspx?Entry=3648

  2. #2
    pixeldoctor's Avatar
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    Let them make more missteps and let us organize to ACT

    Let them continue to make such missteps for a while. Let them reveal their true selves to the American people and the true citizens - Let them

    It will awaken a much strnger response against their movement and illegals.

    In the meantime we MUST do as much as WE can to muster our personal network of friends and family to RECOGNISE, UNDERSTAND and ACT

  3. #3
    Senior Member reptile09's Avatar
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    The only problem is the Main Stream Media does not portray it that way. They make every excuse to cover for their radical ideas and intentions. Here in San Diego, the local news completely ignores the fact that many of the protesters incite rhetoric like "Gringos go back to Europe" or "This land is stolen land" or the ever present "Viva Mexico", "Viva La Raza" and other garbage being chanted in Spanish.

    They even defend their Mexican flag waving, reporting that they are just showing pride in their heritage. Not a single news station here stood up to the protesters and called them on their anti-American jabs. Not a single one called them on the fact that if they want to live in America, why not do it LEGALLY? Why not wave American flags? Why not speak English?

    They completely roll over to these invading, lawbreaking mobs and express their viewpoint as simple civil rights demonstrations, while at the same time calling anyone who dares oppose the invasion anti-immigrant, xenophobic or racist. They even showed people who dared stand up to the protesters an called them the trouble makers, saying the protesters were civil and peaceful, met with violent opposition by critics to their cause.

    I am so sick of our news media bending over backwards to defend their rights to aything they demand, all the while ignoring the one basic fact of th matter:

    THEY'RE ILLEGAL ALIENS, NOT UNDOCUMENTED WORKERS. THEY HAVE NO CIVIL RIGHTS, THEY HAVE NO EQUAL RIGHTS, THEY SHOULDN'T EVEN BE HERE IN THE FIRST PLACE!!
    [b][i][size=117]"Leave like beaten rats. You old white people. It is your duty to die. Through love of having children, we are going to take over.â€

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