Tucson attorney Richard Martinez, who represents students and teachers in an ongoing federal lawsuit that challenges the constitutionality of the state’s anti-Mexican American Studies law, debated state Superintendent John Huppenthal this morning on Democracy Now!
Huppethal does what we’ve come to expect (other than lie) — throw around tea baggery words like Marxist, but his best line yet could be “La Raza was short hand for all the controversy associated with these classes,” trying to defend his anti-Mexican campaign when he ran for superintendent of public instruction — which always helps get those extra votes. Or what about comparing Mein Kampf to the books used in the Mexican American Studies classroom.
The last time Martinez took on Arizona tea baggery was his outstanding debate last year with state Attorney General Tom “I Marched with Martin Luther King, Jr.” Horne, who led the fight against Mexican-Americans when he began his campaign to get the legislature to pass a law that would lead exactly where we are right now. The video below is from Tucsonan Daniel Buckley:
This article appears in Jan 12-18, 2012.
I think what stood out the most about the Democracy Now exchange was the continuous link Huppenthal was attempting to make between Mein Kampf and the ethnic studies course material. The comparison coming at a time when the district is collecting a list of books from schools and sequestering them. Didn’t the Nazis collect books they weren’t fond of? Hmm….
Never mind the cliche and racist comments coming from the other side, right Mari? It’s all about La Raza et al, right Mari? In your narrow view of the world, anyone who’s anti ILLEGAL immigration is automatically a xenophobe, a racist, and anti immigrant. You totally failed to address the revisionist history that La Raza and other fringe groups like this perpetrate. Or, how about all the county time Isabel Garcia wastes by promoting her racist organization, Derechos Humanos while on the county’s clock? For every stone you claim that Huppenthal throws, La Raza and their ilk are throwing back boulders and often times initiating outright hate campaigns! Here’s a news flash, Mari… if one is of Mexcian heritage and born in the US, then that person is an American period. It’s people like you who try to push a politically correct agenda of hyphenating everyone by their so called race that makes this country weak. You’re either an American who’s proud to be American or you’re an American who’s like Michelle Obama and not proud of this country unless it’s doing something for you or giving you a handout. If life is so bad being an American, Mari, perhaps you and those like you (your limited mindsets) should go to the fictional land of Aztlan and see how much greener the grass is…
This can of worms shouldn’t be opened. Nobody will win. Americans of Mexican decent,
either born here or naturalized I will accept as a concept, as will most folks. It denotes a pride of heritage. More power to ’em on that front.
Mexican-Americans? Well that denotes a duality of allegiance, doesn’t it?
Either way, race should be a word banned from the government’s vocabulary at all levels of government. It’s either a melting pot of cultures or racial disharmony. Take your choice. Disharmony fosters pain and suffering…..we should move on from that un-civilized behavior. All of us are better than that. To have these people TRYING to foster violent revolution is sick, and will result in harm to many sons and daughters, all of which should be on the same side, not opposing sides.
Mari Herreras – the more you blog, the more you expose your bigotry and ignorance. Classes that only support one ethnic group do not belong in PUBLIC schools. Why don’t you open your own private school and get like-minded people to teach the curriculum you want to students of your choosing instead of trying to leach funding dollars from people who do not support and would not benefit from “La Raza” studies.
Mari: Your post was cleary unbiased and indisputably objective. This is stellar journalism. I am starting a Facebook group in your honor to have your name considered for the Pulitzer Prize. No thanks necessary, you are welcome. I bet it will get 1,000,000 “likes” by the end of the year. We are a shoe-in.
I could spill a bowl of alphabet soup and the mess it made would form into something better than this crap you just wrote.
– B.K. in Phoenix
Arizona and it’s politics, the shit stain of this country (it’s matters like these that makes the world hate America). The complete utter ignorance of some people here is appalling! Anyway my college campus in San Diego is following this issue, you have our support Latinos and, quite frankly, all those who wish to benefit from worldly views and perspectives. SIGUE LA LUCHA!
“Ignorance is the night of the mind, but a night without moon and star.”
“Real knowledge is to know the extent of one’s ignorance.” -confucius