In our local Casa Grande Dispatch this mornng, an article was written by two AP reporters (Phil Davenport andJonathan Cooper) It begins: "Arodi Berrelleza isn't one of the targets of Arizona's new anti-illegal immigration law -- he's a U. S. citizen.
But the 18 year old high school student from Phoenix said he's afraid he'll be arrested anyway, if police see him driving around with friends and relatives, some of them illigal immigrants.."
The article goes on to talk about how he is afraid he will be stopped and asked for "papers" just because of the color of his skin.
Well now! How about a big headline that "Thousands of Mexican-Americans are NOT stopped today." Or "Hundreds of cops did NOT racially profile or invade anyone's privacy today." or "Dog did NOT bite man today."
Why do these AP writers seem to need to write a front page story about someone who did NOT get stopped -- nor is likely to get stopped if he is minding his business and staying out of trouble? Thousands of high school kids were out of school on the day of the signing of this new bill by Governor Jan Brewer,just to protest something they know nothing about. I wonder who let them out! As I understand, this bill takes the language of the Federal law word for word and makes a state law out of it. If one is not constitutional -- then wouldn't the other also be unconstiutional?
Maybe I just don't get it. But it seems pretty simple to me. Some are breaking our laws and need to be arrested and taken into custody for it -- and then delt with in an appropriate manner. If that is the job of the Federal Government -- then why did we have a rancher who's family has lived just next to the Mexican border -- killed in cold blood by an illigal immigrant -- and the Federal authorities said they had insufficient manpower to do anything about it? We do. Arizonans do -- now. But a segment of our population (not nearly a majority) are screaming about getting stopped because they have brown skin and will use "racial profiling" as a means of filtering out the illigals. They are yelling about stopping people just because they "Look like Mexicans." Welll -- at the risk of sounding politically incorrect --- DUH! They are coming from Mexico they would -- in all probability -- look like Mexicans! Right?
My neighbors all around me are Hispanic people -- American
Citizens. They were either born here or got their citizenship. Thoughout my life, I have had felolow workers and hundreds of friends who are of Hispanic origin. I have not discussed this law with them. However, I suspect they would tell me they would be happy to fork over their "Papers" in the very very unlikely event they should be "stopped" for some reason. I liken it to a drunk driving blockade. If you are legal (not drunk), it might be a little inconvenient -- you simply stop and show your license and go on down the road. No big deal But if you are drunk and might get caught, it really scares the hell out of you and pisses you off for getting stopped and checked. (But it also might save your own or someone else's life, too.)
Back to the writers of the AP article. Guys -- I was in the news reporting business for many years. I know we need a glamerous hook on the story to get the attention of the public -- it is the way we make our living and revenue for our media. But, for God's sake -- lets stop slanting stories in the wrong direction and stick to the facts and the truth.
From the Heart by Olaf Hart.
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In all of my working years, especially the twenty we owned our own business, I came to realize that the average White American is the least racist of any American of other ethnic groups.
ReplyDeleteAnd~those other ethnic groups of Americans whine and complain the most and loudest about unfair treatment.
Jeez. If they'd all just shut up and go about their business, as most of us do, there would be a lot fewer problems.