May Immigration Rallies, showing solidarity or backlash inducing demnonstration?

I wrote Cindy Rodriguez this.It might be a good read.
crodriguez@denverpost.com

May 1st anti immigration reform rallies. Backlash inducing demonstrations or coherent solidarity?

Cindy,I’ve always enjoyed your columns, if for nothing else, for their passion. I at least know precisely where your prejudices are.

If I could spend ½ hour with the national rally organizers I would try to convince them of a few things.I cannot go into all the reasons for this but I will tell you why as best I can.

The rallies should be held at every Mexican Consulate in the cities targeted.
I know the rally is for a show of ‘solidarity’ and protesting the coming legislation regarding illegal aliens. That point is not lost on me. This is futile in the sense of accomplishing anything but backlash. Then of course your villain list can grow and you have more to write about the ‘racist’s ‘among us. That aside however, there will be backlash and possible violence.
The organizers have not articulated what they want.

Weakness #1:

You and others know what you’re against, but there is no goal, a specific idea to be offered in remedy. They must develop this.

If they were to protest the Mexican situation in their own country, it would show two things to the American redneck like me.

First they are assigning a responsibility for their current plight in the right direction. What else brought them here? They re not ‘caught’ in a national debate, most endured hardships that brought them to the place they are now. It was a conscious decision on their part.

So if they protested what brought them here, I, looking at the news coverage would say, “Hoorah! Now their cooking with gas!”.

I am certain this would quiet many of the rednecks.

A side bonus is that speaking Mexican, holding Mexican flags and Spanish language banners would be okay with us. We don’t feel ‘threatened’ by a foreign language, we just feel that a common language is what makes every country coherent in vision and thought and should not be compromised.It’s really as simple as that Cindy. There is no neurosis in that.

They should also make clear in speeches and banners that they are for strong immigration laws if the Government would streamline the process of getting here legally. Citizenship should be streamlined too.

If the speakers truly understood those that are ‘against’ them, they would say, “We understand your concern, we agree as we are concerned in our homeland with South American illegal immigrants coming into Mexico. We do not wish to destroy strong immigration standards; we only wish to change the current method of legally entering the country.

We respect your laws, it is not out of disrespect that we come here; it is out of necessity due to the conditions in our own homeland and we stand here in protest of that, first and foremost.”

If I heard and saw that on the evening news, I being a redneck would know that the ‘movement’ is on the right track These people are then showing courage by protesting their own government. They have families there and could be placing them in danger possibly. They are brave for doing this.

However, as long as the uninvited guest’s demand of their host, the general feeling among us rednecks is, if you don’t like the party, leave. It is impolite to come here uninvited by the vast majority, and then demand things. Not good Cindy and I don’t think any of the left’s socialist guilt ridden self righteous bullshit is going to change people’s minds on that. In fact if the situation were reversed these illegal aliens would be very upset if Americans protested in the streets of Mexico, demanding things.

The operative word Cindy, which you always drop is illegal or a more understandable term can be substituted “uninvited”.

If you scoff at the law, if you shun it and think you are above it, then don’t expect it to protect you. That is what I would say to the illegal aliens. I don’t begrudge them a better life, I do begrudge them expecting to ‘change’ the rules by threat and attempting to make me feel guilty for wanting to protect that which they so obviously want.

The wanting it is not wrong, the demands for our not having the right to control over who comes into our house is. I earned it, my father earned it, I have a right to protect it, period

It is perfectly okay for us to not want uncontrolled immigration. If I came into your house uninvited because I was not treated well at my house, you would want the right to say no. When can I start living at your place?I’m a little Irishman that can make you laugh, I’ll dump your trash, clean your bathroom pubic hairs off the toilet bowl without complaint, I promise, and I’m an American citizen that supposedly won’t do that job. (Smile please)

I hope that the illegal aliens in this country show respect the American forefather’s who fought for this country as I have. In that respect they show respect for our laws.

Cindy, it is okay to have American laws for Americans and how we treat those that come here as our guests. I’d say 99% of all rednecks agree with this redneck on that. Respect first.

These rallies should have the tone of ASKING to stay, explaining why, and then cheer for the country they want to stay in while protesting the Government of Mexico, the country they felt forced to leave. As long as they make themselves out to be victims, there will be disagreement from the majority of our citizens.

“We’ll jump through the hoops, we’ll ‘sign up’ just show us how, but make it streamlined, our conditions at home warrant your concerns. Thanks for allowing us to share in your freedom!”


Cindy, now that you’ve had a good laugh delete this or forward it to someone you know within the movement.

It could go a long way to alleviate this tension now between us and the illegal alien community.If the rally organizers do not see the wisdom in this, then I don’t blame them. After all it is from a racist redneck.

Old Democrat