They, the Un-Patriotic Hispanics

They, the Un-Patriotic Hispanics

The new national poll shows that 64% of respondents agreed with SB1070 in Arizona. Coincidently, the same poll show that 63% of respondents agree that this law will lead to discrimination against Hispanic citizens. Moreover, in the same poll, 70% of Hispanics somewhat or strongly opposed to the law, compared with 34% of all respondents. 82% of Hispanics feel this law will unfairly target Hispanic citizens and legal residents alike. If the polls are accurate, those citizens not inconvenient with law, though discriminatory, believe this a fair law, whereas Hispanics strongly oppose it because they feel this law will lead to discrimination towards Hispanics citizens, or those legally residing in the US. Fully 82% of Hispanics said they are concerned about profiling, compared with overall 66%. See poll graph link below

Also, because Hispanics overwhelmingly opposed this laws, some accusations are flowing around by some Conservative/Republicans arguing that, they are un-conservative, less Americans, or unpatriotic; essentially closet liberals. But this could not farther from the true. American History chapters are replete with ethnic groups fighting through economic (boycotts) and legal means in federal courts to protect ethnic identity and to express grievances against unjust laws. Thus, our current Hispanic financial and legal struggle against this law has been deemed detrimental by the majority of Hispanics; thereupon, our struggles–both legal and economic–against this law are merely another history chapter in this great nation of ours, and it is only rekindling our traditional American fighting spirit in search of justices and integrity.

American Historians believe that our unwavering American fighting spirit is strong due to the early Scott-Irish settlers from ragged peripheries the Scotland-England Northern Ireland areas, and who later settled in South and fought war in defense of cultural identity in Britain and political ideals in the South. The fiercely independent Scots-Irish settlers were fiercely loyal to clan and sect, and they know that survival and success depended on the willingness to fight in response to challenges to property or status and their cultural identity. “The main source of strength was fostered by fierce pride and stubborn independence.” These proud people, sensitive to offenses to their honor, community, and willing to fight to preserve it, was what created the staunch American fighting Spirit that has protected our ideal and nation. So, if many fellow Conservative/Republicans believe that our current struggle may be ethnically unpatriotic, let me assure them that, in fighting to protect our Mexican-American communities in Arizona through economic and legal means, we are merely rekindling the traditional American fighting Spirit. Furthermore, these, type economic and legal ethnic struggles are not new to Americans.

In 1968, the re-surgence of Irish nationalism due to the oppressive condition if Catholics Irish in Northern Ireland created the NORAID ( Irish Northern Aid) the Irish National Caucus (INC) and the traditional Friends of Ireland, all of whom were mainly by Irish-Americans. The key issue/goal of these groups was to influence the leadership of the US Government to seek favorable solution for Irish. Hence, all the groups aligned under the Americans for New Irish Agenda, or ANIA. Since the outset NORAID was very closely associated with the IRA. No Irish-American politician openly supported the IRA, but the elites and politician did donate to the NORAID which in turn financed the IRA.
Moreover, 1977 when the INC pressure the Ad Hoc Committee in Congress, with a membership democratic of one-hundred all representing majority of Irish population, to force Britain. Initially, the INC focused on human right violations of Catholics in Northern Ireland and manage that the U.S. government called for a ban on commercial transaction by the U.S. in Ireland and England during the national Democratic Convention of 1984. Hence, Sean McBride, together with chairman of the INC set the principles for the “nine McBride principles”, which linked the policies of South Africa to Northern Ireland.

Under this new set of principles, by 1992, 13 states will no longer be able to make economical transactions with Britain. Under the hospices of race, religious and of work discrimination in Northern Ireland The INC also put pressure on leading Irish-American politicians, like Ted Kennedy and John Kerry, Massachusetts governor ,and Tip O’Neil (speaker of the House) issued strong stamens against Britain and the Speaker of the House made several visit to Ireland condemning Britain. So all of those accusing Rep Gov. Perry of Texas Gov. Schwarzenegger as pandering to Hispanics, or Major of Los Angeles Villaraigosa as pandering to Mexico, if there is one thing they are pandering American History and its fairness and justice in deference of our communities, like the Irish did.

But Irish-Americans have not been alone in exerting economic boycotts to protect their ethnic identity and integrity. For American Jewish, the Holocaust became a major social symbolism in American life and windfall for American Jews to pressure the American government to forced western companies and banks into payments of retribution. When German and Swiss government refused to pay, the America Jews were indignant. Senator from New York at the time Alfonse D’Amato headed the lawsuit against Germany and Austria. Many western European countries were highly vulnerable to the U.S. When former Senator D’amato, a Jewish-American, became part of the team, and to boost his standing in the Jewish community moved the entire political establishment to denounce the perfidious Swiss; so The House and the Senate banking committees immediately held hearing.

Senator D’atamto, as head of the Banking committee, called for hearing and Swiss banks in 1995–Sen. D’amato was head of The. Barbara Boxer, a Jewish Senator herself, also declared that the Committee will not stand with the “two-faced behavior of the Swiss government.” The point of the Senate and House hearings was to financial pressure Switzerland to give in.

Apart from Congressional hearing, Class-action lawsuit against Switzerland by Jewish organization served as a weapon to boycott business between the U.S. and Switzerland. By October 1996, Ney York Governor George Pataki, and Senator D’amato had successfully lent support to halt any state busyness with Switzerland until it had disclosed all WW II holocaust accounts. Soon New jersey, Illinois, Rhode Island, and in 1997 California followed suit. By 1998, 5 more state added laws to sanctions Switzerland.

Therefore, If 70% of Hispanics in the new national poll vehemently oppose this law and 82% believed this will lead to rampant profiling, why would some Conservative/Republicans would accuse us of being unpatriotic in seeking to protect out community from what we, Hispanics, overwhelmingly considered unjust. We too are imbued with the fighting spirit of the Scott-Irish who fought to protect their communities in peripheries of Scotland and Northern Ireland areas and later the American South in defense of political ideals. Consequently, in this fight, our political ideals are American at heart, and our collective cultural identity ought to our strength against this law. And, to all those Republican naysayers who may accuse us of unpatriotism let me remain you that , like the Irish and Jews few years ago, we do have the legitimate right, as an ethnic group, to express our grievances, seek protection for our communities under any legal and economic terms; all without suspicion of unpatriotism.

It could be said that we are the new Scot-Irish seeking to protect our cultural integrity, or the new Irish who seek, through boycotts, aid our brothers an sisters in Arizona, or like the new Jews who will not retreat until wrong is turned into good, even if means utilizing the constitutional power of the federal courts and the Congress. These actions are neither un-conservative nor un-patriotic but rather another chapter in our Great American History. “patriotism, more than little flags on politicians’ lapels, is about actions. It’s not about odes to American greatness; it’s about taking on your government when it goes astray“, and we know that Arizona has gone astray with this law taking on it.

http://online.wsj.com/public/resources/documents/info-enlargePic07.html?project=imageShell07&bigImage=NBCWSJPOLL-WSJ-100513.gif&h=870&w=959&title=WSJ.COM&thePubDate=20080826

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