Category Archives: DREAM Act

Last Night’s RomTinos

Posted on February 1, 2012 | Leave a comment

I just watched an interview on CBS between Charlie Rose and the guy who will probably start working on voice-overs calling himself “Meat” (that’s Mitt with a Spanish accent) stating he will be seeking the Hispanic vote, since he received over 1/2 of the Latino vote in the Florida Primary. There’s just one problem with that logic–the rest of American Latinos are not right-wing Cubanos.

Now, nothing against Cubanos. Those who have received automatic amnesty upon arrival give other Latino immigrants something for which to hope. But they tend to vote Republican, anyway. The reality is that, even with some growth in activity, Hispanics made up 15% of the Republican Primary in La Florida, according to some exit polling. Chalk it up to their continued self-loathing love affair with Marco Rubio, perhaps millions spent on TV ads, and “Meat’s” sudden change of heart with his “blood for papers” DREAM Act revelation.

Romney seems to have come out of Florida with some cockiness, senselessly attacking President Obama, yet already calling out the Obama Campaign for “vitriol” that hasn’t even been scripted, much less made it to the the video editor. I guess that’s his strategy to become the “nice guy” by default.

But as Newt told us last night, there are 46 states to go. The media will play Romney (or is that overplay?) as the guy to beat, and Mitt will get himself a lot of free advertising. Let’s not even state the obvious–that Mitt could not even manage 50% last night among “conservatives.” He may become the chosen among GOPers, but surely not by default.

By the end of February, the GOPers will have gone through Nevada, Colorado, and Arizona, where Republicans aren’t Latino-friendly and where there are plenty of Latinos. And, no Cuban GOPers–or, at least, not as many. Either the GOPers will move on toward Super Tuesday badly damaged in the eyes of Hispanic voters, or quite flawed in the eyes of their own GOP voters for pandering to Hispanics in one way or another.

So, let Romney talk. Let him think that his anti-immigrant, anti-opportunity agenda is well-loved by Latinos. Either way, what comes out of his mouth will make for good ads and YouTubes.

Let’s just make sure progressives have a strong response.

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Chicano Politics, DREAM Act, Houston Dems '12, Houston Politica, Immigration, LatinoVote '12, President 2012, TDP Convention 2012, Texas Dems 2012

Professor Acuna Sounds Off on Arizona

Posted on January 30, 2012 | Leave a comment

Dr. Rodolfo Acuña, Professor Emeritus of History at Cal-State Northridge, sounded off in The Progressive on Arizona’s recent banning of Mexican American studies courses, books, and materials, asking the question:  When do you start to count?

When the great Muhammad Ali was asked how many sit-ups he did, he responded, “I don’t count my sit-ups. I only start counting when it starts hurting. That is when I start counting, because then it really counts. That’s what makes you a champion.”

These words resonate in Tucson, where Latina/o students are fighting for an education by sitting-in in the office of Tucson Unified School District Superintendent of Schools John Pedicone, walking out of classes, demonstrating, and taking to the streets.

Students are dispelling the myth that Mexican Americans do not care about education; they have started counting because it hurts. They know the difference between having subject matter that is relevant and having those books warehoused, between having teachers who believe in what they are teaching and sitting through classes where teachers go through the motions.

Read the rest here.

I agree with Professor Acuña when he says that the purpose of this is to intimidate other groups who may want to fight back against injustice. And as he says, this is about keeping Mexicans in their place–without a sense of history, without a sense of self. When liberals begin to realize what this is all about, then we can have a conversation about “Latino outreach” in politics. Otherwise, we’re just grasping at whatever is left.

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Chicano Politics, DREAM Act, Houston Dems '12, Houston Politica, Immigration, President 2012, TDP Convention 2012, Texas Dems 2012, U.S. Ethnic Relations, Violence Against Latinos

CNNs Republatino Debate – A Comedy of Duh!

Posted on January 26, 2012 | 3 Comments

Note:  I’ve been advised that “republatino” and “republatina” have now been trademarked . So, I guess I’ll have to call them “Re-Pendejos”? It was trademarked in 2011, supposedly, but I’ve been using it since 2005.

And the Texas Democratic Party has their pre-debate response to the whole hypocrisy, which I will add below. Bottom line:  ”Mewt” is not interested in serving any group of people. In fact, they are interested in corporate interests.

Even their Latino-esque-slash-immigration pronouncements will be about how best to exploit cheap labor under the guise of being “Latino-friendly,” as their republatino self-loathers club (including Marco Rubio) have attempted to spin this Florida episode.

Here’s what will happen tonight:  They’ll attempt being friendly with DREAMs of IED Fodder Act; they will say that Latinos are conservatives just like them; they will push the corporate charter school/school choice line; and I’m sure we’ll hear something about boot straps somewhere along the way. They will avoid words and phrases like equality, family unity, education funding, etc. Of course, I’m sure there will be attempts at lecturing Latinos, too.

I agree with the TDP that once they are done with the Latino niceties in Florida, it’s back to their normal–especially those other southern states.

Here’s the TDPs take:

Austin—Tonight the Republican presidential contenders will be taking part in a CNN/Hispanic Leadership Network debate. TDP spokeswoman Rebecca Acuña released the following statement:

“This momentary desire to appeal to Latinos will pass the second the polls close in Florida and the vehemently anti-Latino policies and attitudes that have dominated this presidential primary will return. The President has pushed for comprehensive immigration reform and passage of the DREAM Act while Republicans continue to view Latinos as little more than a political piñata.

As the GOP contenders tout their ‘moral values’ they won’t mention they are the party that punishes immigrant children because their parents dreamt of a better life for them.

Mitt Romney will probably not brag about the endorsement he received from Kris Kobach, the architect of the draconian Arizona and Alabama immigration laws. He won’t mention that as Governor, he vetoed the Massachusetts DREAM Act, and will likely try to gloss over the fact that he’s promised to veto the federal DREAM Act. He’ll have to defend his claim that ‘self-deportation’ is an immigration policy, which drew laughs at the last Florida debate.

Newt Gingrich is unlikely to repeat his comments that Spanish is the ‘language of the ghetto’ and will try to not dwell on the fact that he only supports the military provision in the DREAM Act.

It’s insulting that Newt Gingrich thinks it’s ok for immigrant students to risk their lives for this country, but not ok for them to practice their professions. Republicans are on the wrong side of every issue that’s important to Latinos. Before they got to Florida they were practically beating us off with a stick.”

According to a recent Latino Decisions poll, registered Hispanic voters in Florida support President Obama 67 to 25 over Mitt Romney and 70 to 22 over Newt Gingrich.

I like our chances with either of these, but if the self-loathers want Newt because he’s so “Latino-friendly,” bring it on!

→ 3 Comments

Posted in Bigots and Liars, Chicano Politics, DREAM Act, Houston Dems '12, Houston Politica, Immigration, LatinoVote '12, President 2012, TDP Convention 2012, Texas Dems 2012

Rick Perry’s THECB Takes Steps to Become La Migra

Posted on January 24, 2012 | Leave a comment

At least that’s what it seems like.

Teddy Wilson at the American Independent reports that the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board is about to give colleges and universities added tasks regarding the Texas DREAM Act. I’ll call them “migra” tasks.

Currently, the Texas DREAM Act calls for a student to sign an affidavit committing to seeking a positive change to their immigration status. The policy change calls for higher education institutions to now manage the affidavits, as well as “remind” students of their obligations to fix their status.

According to the new policy, which has been placed on the consent agenda for the meeting, institutions will be required to “retain the signed affidavits permanently, and to instruct students when they are admitted, annually while they are enrolled, and upon graduation of their obligation to apply for permanent resident status.” The new rules also call for the institutions to “refer students to the proper federal agency” for instructions on how to apply for legalized status.

So, why the change? Well, they blame Mitt and Newt and the rest of the Republicans who have used Latinos and immigrants as their favorite political piñata.

“During the presidential election, when the dialog became so white hot, our board decided that there could be changes to the way the law is implemented,” said Chavez.

So, bigoted remarks by candidates are cause for policy changes, now? And wasteful policy changes, at that, according to a student Wilson quotes in the article.

“Higher education institutions are not knowledgeable in immigration law and would not know how to approach a federal agency about a student’s situation without putting in peril their privacy. For institutions of higher education to handle this without prior training is in fact, an unfunded mandate.”

We’ll be keeping an eye on this. Great article by Teddy Wilson!

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Chicano Politics, DREAM Act, Higher Education, Houston Dems '12, Houston Politica, Immigration

FL GOP Debate Clears Up DREAM Views

Posted on January 23, 2012 | Leave a comment

I think it’s pretty clear:  Both Newt and Mitt do not support the DREAM Act. Well, it’s OK to have DREAMs of citizenship if you want to be a soldier, but even Newt made it clear that going to college should not earn you any rights.

And it looks like Mitt Romney’s immigration plan is pretty simple:  Self-deport, just like his family did–from the US and from Mexico.

On language:  They all reserve the right to campaign in Spanish, but don’t you dare try to conduct gum’mint business in your language. According to Mitt, bilingual education has caused “American” kids to learn less English (if I caught his drift).

So, as the Somos Self-Deporters group tries to spin Romney’s supposed flip-flop, I hope they develop a similar policy pronouncement as Mewt (I can’t tell them apart anymore) so we can tell which Latinos are actually for CIR and DREAM.

→ Leave a comment

Posted in DREAM Act, Immigration, President 2012

Immigration No Longer a Top Issue?

Posted on January 23, 2012 | 1 Comment

The latest poll from the Pew folks is telling us that fewer Americans see (illegal) immigration as a top issue, Dunham at the Chron reports. Given some of the Republican presidential primary debates, one would think it’s their only issue. Americans, though, seem to be thinking differently.

Thirty-nine percent of Americans call illegal immigration an important issue, down from 55 percent in 2007.

That’s a bigger drop than crime (14 percentage points), the environment and global warming (both 13 point declines).

On the flip side, the economy has rocketed up 18 percentage points in importance since the beginning of the Great Recession. The budget deficit (plus 16 percentage points).

Terrorism has slipped from the top spot on the priority list five years ago to third now, behind the economy and jobs.

Overall, illegal immigration ties for 17th on a list of top priorities, tied with strengthening the U.S. military. The only issues less important to voters are global trade, transportation, cutting military spending, campaign finance and global warming.

Well, this doesn’t mean Republicans will stop using Latinos and immigrants as their political piñata. Whether there are threats of a DREAM Act veto (Romney) or the creation of an all-new Bracero (labor exploitation) program (Gingrich), it is all about making the base and the big corporate check-writers happy. Either of these short-sighted ideas can make Latinos the political cucuy of 2012.

What it does provide us is a window at how voters are feeling nowadays, and if the economy and jobs are the issue, then it will be a battle of ideas. I like our chances in this type of battle, as long as we can clearly outline our ideas and defend them.

And I hope someone reminds some of our blue-dogs that immigration is not a top issue, too.

→ 1 Comment

Posted in Chicano Politics, DREAM Act, Houston Dems '12, Houston Politica, Immigration, LatinoVote '12, TDP Convention 2012, Texas Dems 2012

Gingrich’s Republatinos

Posted on January 19, 2012 | Comments Off

The big news (apparently) yesterday was that a republatino group came out in support of Gingrich.

And right before a big primary in South Yahoo-lina. Nice strategy.

The reason?

“We believe Speaker Gingrich is the most Hispanic-friendly candidate in the race,” Steve Rodriguez, a spokesman for the group, told CNN in a phone interview from Colorado.

Does this sound Hispanic friendly?

“We should replace bilingual education with immersion in English so people learn the common language of the country and they learn the language of prosperity, not the language of living in a ghetto,” Gingrich said to cheers from the crowd of more than 100.

And these stances aren’t all that Hispanic-friendly, either.

But immigration and being the target of a GOP culture war aren’t the only issues of interest to Latinos. Just like the rest of America, we are interested in jobs and the economy. Latinos want to save Social Security, not privatize it. Latinos support universal health care, not the same old way of doing things. Here are a few of Newt’s stances on these issues.

Que feo, ¿verdad?

Bottom line:  There is no Republican candidate in the mix that is “Hispanic-friendly.”

Comments Off

Posted in 2012 Profiles, Chicano Politics, DREAM Act, Houston Dems '12, Houston Politica, Immigration, LatinoVote '12, TDP Convention 2012, Texas Dems 2012

Immigration: Responding to a Federal Issue Locally

Posted on January 4, 2012 | 3 Comments

Note:  Apologies for the delay on this one. But since there’s still been some discussion, I thought I’d add my own take.

At the last Harris County Democratic Party CEC meeting, precinct chairs approved, without contention, a resolution which laid out the local party’s position on immigration enforcement–that it is best left to the feds.

Crafted by, and read to the Dem leaders, by my friend and candidate for HCDE Trustee Silvia Mintz, the resolution makes it clear that Democrats support comprehensive federal immigration reform, and not the targeted legislation put forth by Rick Perry, Debbie Riddle, and the Republicans at the state level.

A local “celebrity” put forth the opinion on a Democratic e-mail list that this type of resolution should be left to the national level of politics (DNC), but, to me, that kind of suggestion comes straight out of the failed playbook of the past in which even the most revered academic minds once told us to just ignore Republican rhetoric and that the issue would just go away. Remember?

As Congressional candidate James Cargas reminded us in his own e-mail supporting HCDP’s resolution:

While these statement may seem obvious to Mr. Jones, it is not to the Tea Party Conservatives in states like Arizona and Alabama which are actively passing STATE legislation on immigration.  We have the same crowd in Texas led by Governor Oops who made immigration legislation a priority in the last legislature.

And let me tell you, if it is the intent of Democrats to increase voter turnout and increase Hispanic voter engagement, then we need to be talking about (and defending on) this issue locally because the Republicans will be on the attack on this issue, while avoiding the negative impact they’ve had on jobs and the economy–the issues about which 2012 should be. (And recent polling tells us as much.) Democrats can defend and then return the discussion to the issues at hand because, ultimately, 2012 is about the failure of Republicans to lead and help govern. And they won’t mind saying Dems “failed” in their own way at immigration reform, either.

Some say all politics is local, but people (voters) have national issues on the brain, right now.

Resolution Below–

Continue reading →

→ 3 Comments

Posted in 2012 Profiles, Chicano Politics, DREAM Act, Houston Politica, Immigration, LatinoVote '12, TDP Convention 2012, Texas Dems 2012

Pew: Dems Still Poll Strong With Latinos

Posted on December 28, 2011 | Comments Off

The most recent Pew Hispanic poll on various issues found some interesting data, including the fact that Latinos still like Democrats–a lot! Even as President Obama’s number tank a bit, pitted against some of the “top” Republicans in the running, Latinos still vote Obama by some pretty good margins. Still, one has to wonder how energetic that Latino vote is–that’s my biggest worry as we begin the 2012 race.

Although Latinos poll strongly in favor of comprehensive immigration reform, they resoundingly slam President Obama on his deportation policies. My advice to Democratic candidates (and their handlers) is to tread lightly when trying to impress some with “security” rhetoric that either attacks Latinos and immigrants or gives President Obama credit for deporting 1 million people, mostly Latinos.

I mean, it wouldn’t be a bad “defense” against what will be the usual racially charged attacks against Democrats for what they say is “weakness” on immigration, but seeing how Republicans have gone so far to the right on the issue, and their policies have failed various states (Arizona, Georgia, Alabama), Democrats really have nothing to gain and much to lose by going to the right on the issue.

What I have stated historically is that Latinos are just like anyone else when it comes to our top issues. Usually, Latinos don’t become “single issue” voters unless Republicans are increasing their hateful rhetoric. And the Pew poll found those three issues when it comes to Latinos:

Half identify jobs as extremely important to them personally, followed closely by education (49%) and health care (45%). These top three reflect the same three issues Hispanic registered voters identified as most important in 2010 (Lopez, 2010) and in 2008 (Lopez and Minushkin, 2008).

So, given that Republicans will probably go crazy on Latinos and immigration, Democrats really have to be ready for the big 3 issues plus one. And how Democrats respond will be crucial, taking into consideration 2008 promises made and the reality of the first term. Because according to the poll, it seems Latinos do know the difference.

And no, this election is not all about Latinos, but they could be the difference–nationally. Just ask Harry Reid.

Comments Off

Posted in 2012 Profiles, Chicano Politics, DREAM Act, Houston Dems '12, Houston Politica, Immigration, LatinoVote '12, TDP Convention 2012, Texas Dems 2012

Silvia Mintz Files for HCDE Pos. 4, Pct. 3

Posted on December 16, 2011 | Comments Off

Silvia Mintz is the latest local activist to file for a seat on the Harris County Department of Education Board of Trustees. Filing on Thursday at the Harris County Democratic Party for the seat which represents County Commissioner Pct. 3, Mintz says she is concerned about the state of education in Harris County, calling it the key to achieving and earning the American Dream.

“I am entering this race because I believe it is crucial that we protect the American Dream through education for future generations here in Harris County.  I am living proof of the American Dream’s extraordinary promise.  I came to Houston and started as a maid and janitor.  Now, I have my own law firm and my daughter is an engineering student in college.  Without access to a solid education, none of this would have been possible.  Given recent policy decisions, now, more than ever, Harris County needs a leader with innovative solutions to repair a broken education system.  The American Dream is being challenged. I am running to ensure that children have access to the highest quality education and a chance to live up to their God-given potential.”

Mintz is a well-known activist in Democratic and immigration reform circles, serving the community in various capacities.

Silvia is a volunteer and board member of various organizations, including the Houston Community College Foundation and Children at Risk.  She also volunteers her time as legal counsel for the Christian organization Pastores en Accion and the Mexican Consulate.

Silvia was also the 2010 Democratic candidate for Texas House District 132. Precinct 3 is a vast area which has become more diverse and the next frontier Democrats in Harris County. The HCDE seats are “bottom of the ballot” races, but with some good Democrats in contention for these seats, they could help keep the entire ballot exciting for voters. No doubt Mintz will be in it to win it as she is assembling a good support team to work the grassroots and the netroots.

You can visit and “LIKE” her Facebook page here.

Comments Off

Posted in 2012 Profiles, Chicano Politics, DREAM Act, Houston Dems '12, Houston Politica, Immigration, K-12 Education, LatinoVote '12, TDP Convention 2012, Texas Dems 2012