HispanicVista Columnists
He said "wetback", HCCW said that's o-kay
- By Robert Miranda
- September 19, 2005
On October 23, 2004, Clear Channel radio talk show, Mark Belling made the following statement, “You watch the voter turnout on the near South side, heavily Hispanic, and compare it to the voter turnout in other elections, and you’re going to see that every wetback and other non-citizen out there voting”.
After using this insidious term to describe Milwaukee's Latino community, Belling joked and mocked his use of the term giving numerous sarcastic apologies. He polled his listening audience on whether he should have used the word or not. After polling his audience he joked by telling them that they were “all wet”.
On November 5, 2004, over 80 Latino leaders met at the offices of Mexican Fiesta to discuss Belling's racist slur. The leaders of Milwaukee’s Latino community met and agreed to demand the permanent removal of Mark Belling from Clear Channel Communications.
For one week Belling mocked and joked about the issue until finally Clear Channel representatives suspended him. That suspension was not a voluntary action by Clear Channel; it only came about after leaders of the Latino community initiated a public decry of Belling and Clear Channel. In addition, the suspension was not the outcome leaders of the Latino community demanded and resolved to pursue. On November 19, 2005, Milwaukee's Latino community issued a statement calling on Clear Channel to respect the work of the Coordinating Committee Against Hate Speech (CCAHS). This group is recognized as the legitimate organization working on behalf of the Latino community regarding this matter. The group asked Clear Channel to follow its policy of “zero tolerance.” In negotiations with Clear Channel representatives, CCAHS leaders reiterated the community's demand that Clear Channel fire Belling keeping with its "zero tolerance" practice it employed in other markets around the country.
Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Wisconsin (HCCW) released a statement in which their CEO, Maria Monreal-Cameron, issued her now infamous "forgive but never forget" statement. The statement gave Clear Channel, a way out. It called for the whole matter to be dropped (see "Malinche in Our Midst" article in this newspaper). The statement drew condemnation from many leaders of the community. Cameron said the statement was issued because Belling made too much money for Clear Channel and that they would never fire him. Leaders in the community blasted the HCCW and condemned them for acting in the interest of HCCW and not in the interest of the community. Clear Channel issued a press release stating that it intended to work with the (HCCW) to resolve the matter. This action by Clear Channel was intended to divide the community from those who wanted Belling fired and those looking to take advantage and profit from the situation.
Before Belling's suspension ended, he issued another apology in writing. However, upon his return to his radio program, Belling, none-the-wiser, played Mariachi Music and bellowed a resounding “Buenas Dias” to his listeners. This insult was then accompanied by his defiant and irresponsible statement that his show’s format would not change and that he could make no promises that future slurs would not be made.
On November 24, 2005, less than two weeks after his return to his show, Belling, used the term “gook” to describe a hypothetical scenario after a hunting tragedy in Wisconsin’s North woods involving an Asian-American.
Emails, phone calls and letters sent to CCHAS members from Belling’s listeners expressed hatred and misinformation all fueled by Belling’s hate speech. Belling unleashed a backlash towards Mexican people by misinforming his listening audience that during the November 2004 elections many illegals would be voting for the democratic presidential candidate.
Large numbers of people saw nothing wrong with demeaning the Mexican community because they believed undocumented Mexicans were committing a felony by voting in the 2004 Presidential Election. Most disturbing thing is Clear Channel’s lack of sensitivity to the impact Belling’s hate speech has had in the Milwaukee market. Is this the kind of psyche Clear Channel wants to continue to produce in our market area?
Belling told his listeners that many illegal individuals would be voting in the November 2, 2004 elections. What he has yet to do to this date is inform his listeners that he was wrong. After intense scrutiny of the voting records by federal and state agencies, not one illegal immigrant had voted. The investigations revealed a number of former felons who voted, but nothing to substantiate Belling's claim was ever produced in the months following the elections.
In January 2005, it was reported by the Chicago Sun Times, that a popular talk-show host, Java Joel (Joel Murphy), was fired from Clear Channel’s WKSC-FM (103.5) for telling a racially charged joke on the air that offended African Americans.
The radio host was immediately terminated from his position and Clear Channel regional representatives issued a statement saying that Murphy’s comments were “inappropriate.”
Joel Murphy, known as Java Joel, was honored for his
work by the Illinois Broadcasters Association’s Silver Dome Award for “Best
Local Radio Station Personality of the Year” a few years ago.
Furthermore, Joel Murphy’s program, known as the “Rubber Room,” was
broadcasted to other cities around the country by Clear Channel stations.
The article in the Chicago Sun Times states that Murphy’s show had a
weekly audience of over 400,000 listeners.
Belling condemned Mexicans’; he used a nasty racial slur to dehumanize them and then judged an entire community guilty of engaging in voter fraud. In February 2005, a meeting with Clear Channel Communications CEO, John Hogan, was held in Milwaukee, WI with CCAHS leaders. Hogan asked members of the CCAHS, “What do you want.” We demanded Belling’s termination. We asked that Clear Channel do what they did in Chicago, Florida and New York. In these markets, Clear Channel fired popular radio hosts for uttering racial slurs and offensive sex oriented language.
Clear Channel in an effort to clean up its image in Milwaukee, issued a letters giving examples of some of the “restitution” that has been made to the Latino Community. It must be pointed out that Clear Channel did not work with the broader community, but worked exclusively with representatives of the HCCW. All restitution was given to HCCW leaders i.e., Perfecto Rivera was given a radio program called "Valor Latino" (see Sr. Sinvergüenza article http://www.hispanicvista.com/HVC/Columnist/rmiranda/011705rmiranda.htm). HCCW leaders argue that this program was not part of a deal to resolve the Belling matter, however, many leaders in the Latino community agree that Rivera only got that radio program as part of Clear Channel's payement to not fire Mark Belling.
Clear Channel engaged in a divisive campaign. Clear Channel shows its contempt for the seriousness of this issue and the demands of the broader Latino community.
To this day, Latinos in Milwaukee are calling for Belling's termination.
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Robert Miranda, a frequent contributing columnist to HispanicVista.com (www.hispanicvista.com), is a national award winning columnist, Latino community activist and Editor-in-Chief of the Milwaukee Spanish Journal. Email at: rmiranda@wi.rr.com