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  1. #1
    Senior Member FedUpinFarmersBranch's Avatar
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    Pr. William Owner Defends Sign as He Removes It

    Pr. William Owner Defends Sign as He Removes It
    Court Sets Condition To End Case Over Pro-Immigrant Wall


    By Jennifer Buske
    Washington Post Staff Writer
    Sunday, September 7, 2008; Page PW01

    A Mexican flag, crumbled cement and a gnarled piece of plywood covered in blue and red lettering were all that remained at Liberty and Prince William streets Friday.

    After standing for almost a year, the 12-by-40-foot pro-immigrant sign that was a symbol of pride for some and an eyesore to others tumbled to the ground Thursday, 15 hours before its owners appeared in court, accused of violating Manassas city code.

    "A year has passed since we placed the first message on the wall, and I don't know how to express that I'm proud we made this decision," Gaudencio Fernandez, 48, said in an interview later. He built the sign to protest what he called "racist" policies that target illegal immigrants in Manassas and Prince William County. "We feel happy knowing the wall did its job but at the same time sad because we loved it."

    Although the sign was gone Friday when Fernandez and his wife, Delia Alvarez, arrived at Prince William General District Court, its image lived on as the couple and about a dozen supporters entered the courtroom wearing shirts that displayed a photo of the sign and said "Mexicanos Sin Fronteras" -- Mexicans Without Borders, a pro-immigrant group.

    The couple faced the judge after receiving a letter from Manassas officials in May stating that their property at 9500 Liberty St. and sign did not comply with city codes and ordinances. Two violations were listed in the letter -- one regarding the failure of the owners to obtain a building permit and the other about trash on the property.

    The judge gave the couple until Tuesday to remove all remnants of the sign from the property. If that happens, the charges will be dropped, the judge said.

    "We express our support to the Fernandez family, and we were proud when they made the decision to use their property to [address] the civil rights struggle," said Ricardo Juarez of Mexicans Without Borders. "What Fernandez did was use his right of free speech, and we stand behind him."


    Kristi Caturano, attorney for the city, said the city and Fernandez's attorney, Mark Voss, have been discussing the case for weeks.

    The two parties agreed that if the sign and its supporting structure came down by Friday evening and the debris was cleared by Tuesday, the charges would be dropped.

    Fernandez, however, said he took the sign down of his own free will.

    He said he would like "to let everyone know that the Fernandez family decided to remove the wall by their own decision and not under any pressure" and added that he thinks more people support the sign than not. "We did it in good faith. . . . We want to work with all the community."

    The billboard was plastered last September on the remaining wall of a house destroyed by fire in 2006. The sign, which sported blue and red block lettering, became known as "the liberty wall" and quickly sparked a heated debate.

    Some supported it, saying Fernandez had a right to free speech. Others were appalled by the message, which compared the local governments' actions to those of the Ku Klux Klan, among others.

    Manassas City Manager Lawrence D. Hughes said the city took awhile to act because of the free-speech issue. In the end, however, the city determined that Fernandez had violated code because he failed to obtain a building permit before he fortified the structure.

    Fernandez said he plans to build another wall, one that is 201-by-14 feet. He said it will be similar to the original sign. He also started the Web site http://libertywall.blogspot.com to make sure the wall lives on.

    "We will follow all the rules and in the near future get a special-use permit to build a new wall on the same land," he said. "I would put up a lot more [walls] if I had the room to denounce any crime of discrimination against our community."


    http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/co ... 00106.html
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  2. #2
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    He feels sso strongly about the sign he tore it down "on his own".

    Just the kind of guy every American wants for a neighbor.
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  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by jimpasz
    He feels sso strongly about the sign he tore it down "on his own".

    Just the kind of guy every American wants for a neighbor.
    I am surprised he was able to get away with it for so long,

  4. #4
    Senior Member Gogo's Avatar
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    Glad he's not living by me. He wouldn't get away with it here.
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  5. #5
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    Maybe the Fernandez folks, besides not obeying laws that say illegal immigration is a crime from the moment you step across the border without permission, or overstay your visa, think nothing about violating anything as petty as code enforcement which us "non-Hispanic whites and African-Americans" have to live with.
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  6. #6
    Senior Member butterbean's Avatar
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    "I would put up a lot more [walls] if I had the room to denounce any crime of discrimination against our community."
    Guess what Gaudencio Fernandez, this isnt Mexico where ANYTHING GOES. It is completly TASTELESS and RUDE to display UGLY EYESORES in open spaces shared by the community. If you want to display such garbage, please do so in the privacy of your own home.
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  7. #7
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    Just another little man with a big mouth
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  8. #8
    Senior Member zeezil's Avatar
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    Fernandez Vows 200 Foot Billboard Will Be Built
    By Greg L | 6 September 2008 | Manassas City | 31 Comments

    According to the MJM, Gaudencio Fernandez will continue his effort to get approval for a two hundred foot long billboard to replace the forty foot long billboard that he recently demolished. You’d think that after already being told that you are not allowed under the building code to erect an accessory structure on the premises (such as a billboard) when there is no primary structure, and that the property is not zoned for this kind of use, he’d realize that this just can’t be legally done in the Historic district, or anywhere else in the city for that matter. Still, he intends to tilt at this windmill.

    Fernandez’ expressed intent here is to erect a billboard that would showcase the Latino community.

    Also on Friday, Fernandez reiterated his plans to apply for a special use permit for a 200-foot-long by 14-foot-high new sign to be placed on the same property. Fernandez said he hopes that the new wall will showcase the Latino community and its “contributions to this great country.â€
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  9. #9
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    For him to get any sort of permit for taking his anti-American rhetoric freedom of speech to new heights and widths would be a travesty, if not harbingng on treason, which I would also apply to those granting the permit. Didn't the previous billboard get done without any permit? Why would anyone grant a permit for a larger anti-American message?
    I hope Manassas will do the right thing.
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