HispanicVista Columnists

The Street Fails, Again

By Raoul Lowery Contreras

War protesters keep trying, they march, they chant, they “pray.” They fail, however, at influencing the American body politic.  This was so visible on Saturday, March 19, when handfuls of war protesters attempted to undermine our war in Iraq that has reached astronomical heights of success, despite ankle bites from terrorists who are helped, aided and comforted by these very war protesters.

Other than a few thousand demonstrators in “Baghdad by the Bay,” San Francisco, nowhere in the country did they manage to turn out massive demonstrations.  In New York City, the New York Times reports that 350 people showed up, as did in Brooklyn.  Some towns and cities, again according to the Times, turned out less than a dozen people.

In San Diego, a dramatic show of empty combat boots was produced by war critics to show the public how many Marines from the Marine Base at Camp Pendleton in San Diego County had died in Iraq (over 200, in fact). 40 to 50 people then marched south to San Diego for what they predicted was to be a huge demonstration in the city’s Balboa Park.

Of over 3-million San Diegans, about a hundred people showed up in a light rain to protest the war, President Bush and the Marines, the very Marines they said they were honoring outside Camp Pendleton with their showy and “arty” empty combat boots.

A handful of Hispanics joined the overwhelmingly Anglo war protestors.  They were the usual suspects with long hair, slave bandanas and doo-rags on their heads, broken English and street patois, scraggly chin whiskers and few high school diplomas.

Some pointed to a recent Pew Hispanic Center survey that concluded that a slight majority of Hispanics thought the war was not run right.  They did not notice, however, that the same survey indicated that among native-born Hispanics, more supported the war and supported keeping our troops in Iraq than not.  That was not the conclusion of foreign-born Hispanics, however.  The survey then mistakenly lumped the two Hispanic groups together to arrive at a consensus slight majority against the war and that expressed desire to bring the troops home.

Like the over-all anti-war demonstrators, this Hispanic survey wrongly concluded its findings because while we honor immigrants and encourage them, we – educated, erudite native-born Hispanics— challenge immigrants who refuse to naturalize or to even start the process towards citizenship.

There is a difference between immigrants and native born.  For example, Rand Corporation studies conclude that native-born Hispanics graduate at the same rate as Anglo students while immigrant students do not.  Also, there is a difference even among immigrants.  Students who come to America before the age of five, graduate at a higher rate than those who come after that age.

Thus, we must reject the findings that a majority of these foreign born Hispanics have legitimate say on American foreign policy.  They simply don’t count on this subject unless their views are segregated and properly labeled as those of non-citizens.  They can’t vote because they choose not to become citizens; thus they shouldn’t be added into Hispanic American attitude surveys unless labeled properly.

No one should say that this writer doesn’t respect immigrants. One must point out, however, that without a proper educational foundation including years of study of American history, government and the Constitution of the United States, these people cannot have educated views on American policy.

On the other hand, why has no one surveyed the thousands of non-citizen Hispanic soldiers, sailors and Marines who are serving in the armed forces of the United States?  If, anyone ever does, the public might be surprised at the attitudes expressed by these immigrant soldiers, sailors and Marines.

I posit that these fighting men and women mostly reject the views expressed by their foreign-born brothers, sister, fathers and mothers. They so indicate by voting with their hands raised in the air while swearing to “protect and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic.”

One must wonder: Who should be listened to, those who do swear to “preserve, protect and defend” the Constitution and the United States of America or those who don’t?

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Contreras’ newest book – THE ILLEGAL ALIEN: A DAGGER INTO THE HEART OF AMERICA?? is available at www.amazon.com, www.barnesandnoble.com and www.floricantopress.com

March 28, 2005