I came across this link in my daily web travels. Your average Rethuglican or Tea Bagger will deny to the death that these comments are racist. Their racism is overt and unchecked, and the eventual casualties are those murdered in cold blood because their lives have been devalued based on their skin color, nationality or ethnic origin.

Here are some examples of the aforementioned. Juan Varela a Phoenix man of Mexican descent and fifth generation American, killed in cold blood by a racist that said “go back to Mexico wetback” before extinguishing his life in front of his brother and mother.

Brisenia Flores a nine year child from Arivaca Arizona shot twice in the face by racist minutemen as she plead for her life and said “please don’t kill me” after she had witnessed the cold blooded murder of her U.S. Citizen father of Mexican descent and the shooting of her U.S. Citizen Mother Gina, also of Mexican descent.

Luis Ramirez in Shenandoah Pennsylvania that was beat to death in a park by white Racist youth for being with his longtime white girlfriend and their child. A crime that invoked the following description of the perpetrators by Justice Department prosecutor Myesha Braden “They may not have intended to kill Ramirez, but thought him somehow worthy of being beaten like a dog in the streets.”

Let me be clear if I haven’t already been in my description of just a handful of incidents, these types of comments carry consequences and create casualties.

Are you still denying it’s racist?

Carlos E. Galindo is a radio talk show host & political analyst conducting radio shows in both English and Spanish on four radio stations in Arizona. Mr. Galindo is a weekly contributor to KPFK 98.7 FM Los Angeles and W60 AM Radio, Los Angeles, San Diego and has appeared on CNN, Univision and Telemundo as a political analyst. Mr. Galindo is also an Op-Ed columnist on Prensa Hispana and the Tucson Citizen in Arizona. Carlos Galindo is President and founder of the Immigrant Advocacy Foundation, Inc.

http://www.carlosgalindo.com

Jan Brewer seems poised and ready to strike once the Supreme Court renders it’s decision regarding SB1070. Brewer just issued an executive order directing the AZPOST (Arizona Peace Officers Standards and Training Board) to issue material previously given to officers enabling them to determine who might be in the country legally.

AZPOST, the agency that oversees police officers in Arizona was commenced 44 years ago under a Republican administration and according to their website their purpose in part is as follows:

The Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training Board was created by an act of the 28th Arizona legislature on July 1, 1968 as the Arizona Law Enforcement Officer Advisory Council. The name was officially changed to its present form on July 17, 1994.

The Board was originally created to address the need for minimum peace officer selection, recruitment, retention and training standards, and to provide curriculum and standards for all certified law enforcement training facilities. The Board was also vested with the responsibility of administering the Peace Officer Training Fund.

So now AZPOST’s job is to determine what an “illegal looks like”. Well at least that’s what Jan Brewer, Arizona’s illustrious governor thinks their job is. While signing SB1070, Brewer was asked by a reporter what she thought an “illegal immigrant” looked like. Brewer stuttered as she struggled to answer the very basic question this law hinges on. After all, if you’re signing a law into effect that is meant to be used to chase down and prosecute undocumented immigrants, you should have a good grasp on what the person you’re targeting looks like.

It’s obvious that Jan Brewer never considered what an “illegal immigrant” looks like, just as she didn’t consider the repercussions that signing this law into effect would create. Most importantly the loss of life it caused in the case of Juan Varela who was shot by his neighbor Gary Thomas Kelley just two weeks after the signing of SB1070 and a concealed weapon law. Kelley approached Varela asking him if he was on his way to, or returning from, a protest against SB1070. When Varela, a fifth generation American Citizen told him to leave him alone, Kelley pulled the concealed weapon from his waistband and brandished it while calling Varela a wetback and telling him to go back to Mexico. Kelley, viciously, and in a criminal act of hate, took Varela’s life in front of Varela’s seventy eight year old mother and his brother.

The effect of SB1070 on the State of Arizona has been great and diverse, from a mass exodus of lawful immigrants fearing harassment based on their prominent indigenous features, to the loss of jobs based on large businesses’ refusal to set up shop in Arizona because of the hostile and polarized environment.

Jan Brewer did what was politically expedient and fruitful for her flailing political career. Brewer was not concerned about how Arizonan’s might be affected, or to what extent they might take this law into their own hands.

As Brewer called Arizona’s traditional immigrant migration, an invasion, as she fabricated stories of decapitated bodies and exclaimed, “it’s out of control, it’s simply out of control”, border militia’s like J.T. Ready’s U.S. Border Guard were formed, and a get him, he’s brown, mentality prevailed. You wouldn’t believe how many times I’ve been told to go back to Mexico, even though I’m a light skinned Mexican Immigrant and a naturalized citizen who speaks perfect English.

Brewer spokesman Matthew Benson on Tuesday said, “The governor is optimistic that the heart of SB 1070 will be upheld and implemented,” he went on to say, “The governor thought this was an appropriate time to revisit the issue and make sure Arizona law enforcement is as prepared as possible for partial or full implementation of the law.”

So as we await the Supreme Court decision, AZPOST prepares to issue updated manuals on what an “illegal immigrant looks like” in order to facilitate police officers in determining who they should stop while driving brown.

There is of course someone else that’s preparing for the onslaught of immigrant arrests. The detention officers who work in the private prison industry who make certain that those determined to be “illegal immigrants” are stuffed into cells like sardines in a can, ensuring that the private prison industry gets the maximum bang for their buck, after all they invested a great deal of money in these local politician’s political campaigns to ensure they had the “right” people in place. That of course includes Governor Brewer’s right hand man, top advisor Chuck Coughlin, the equivalent to George Bush’s Karl Rove aka “The Architect”.

Coughlin is a lobbyist for CCA (Corrections Corporation of America), CCA in turn is a giant in the private prison industry and a specialist in detention of brown skinned folks. The influence that Coughlin has on Brewer is astounding. On his own website, “High Ground Public Affairs”, Coughlin brags about the influence he has had in putting the right people in place within the Brewer administration.

Coughlin’s bio states:

Coughlin was asked to serve by then-Secretary of State Jan Brewer as the Chairman of her Transition Team when she became Governor in 2009. As the Transition Team Chairman, Coughlin assembled a diverse team of business and community leaders who recommended to the Governor her executive management team, senior policy positions, cabinet recommendations and coordinated her swearing in ceremonies. Coughlin chaired the search committee which recommended the succession of Secretary of State Ken Bennett into the role left vacant by Brewer’s ascension to the office of Governor.

The Supreme Court decision could come as early as Monday, and as the immigrant community prepares for the onslaught, Brewer’s mouth and arms move about barking and signing executive orders, while Coughlin and the private prison industry pull her strings. Why does this remind me of the song from the sixties, “I’m your puppet.”

Carlos Galindo talking to white protester during SB1070 protests

Carlos E. Galindo is a radio talk show host & political analyst conducting radio shows in both English and Spanish on four radio stations in Arizona. Mr. Galindo is a weekly contributor to KPFK 98.7 FM Los Angeles and W60 AM Radio, Los Angeles, San Diego and has appeared on CNN, Univision and Telemundo as a political analyst. Mr. Galindo is also an Op-Ed columnist on Prensa Hispana and the Tucson Citizen in Arizona. Mr. Galindo is President & Founder of The Immigrant Advocacy Foundation, a non-profit corporation in good standing.

http://www.carlosgalindo.com

It’s disgusting to see the Republicans in Arizona still using smoke screens to confuse the uninformed and primarily conservative voters. This years legislative session includes legislative bills that are meant to pursue, or single out undocumented Immigrants who have made Arizona their place of abode.

Amongst the bills are ones that want undocumented children counted in the classrooms and a report generated that would go to the senate president and the governor as well as the chairman of the appropriations committee, who as many of us know is Don Shooter (R) Mesa, who donned a sombrero, a sarape and a half-filled bottle of tequila on the first day of the special session last year, making a mockery of the special session that was meant to direct legislators to the request for extension of unemployment benefits for Arizonans. Given the unemployment rate in Yuma Arizona, Senator Shooter should have not only taken his job serious, but taking into consideration the Mexican population in his district and the fact that he is pro SB1070, this was a slap in the face to not just Mexicans in his district, but Mexicans in Arizona. When confronted with his inappropriate behavior, shooter responded “Anybody who knows me, knows I’m a cutup, a jokester, but I also play hard and I work hard” Well, I’ll be, that certainly isn’t behavior conducive with what then senate president Russell Pearce called, “maintaining decorum within the senate building.”

Another example of irresponsible behavior from Arizona’s failed leadership is that of Frank Antenori (R) Tucson. As women prayed at a vigil outside the senate building, Antenori, who is currently running for congress, accompanied by senate majority leader Andy Biggs (R) Gilbert, stood inside the senate building, door open, body half way out, and with bullhorn in hand, turned the siren on while pointing the bullhorn at the women in prayer, later screaming through the bullhorn, “how do you like it?”

This irresponsible and childish behavior on behalf of Arizona legislators and our governor who claims to be part of Arizona’s “leadership”, is not uncommon. Many of us saw the recent images that made their way around the world with our inept governor wagging her finger dangerously close to President Obama’s face while reprimanding him for questioning distorted facts within her book.

I could go on and on about the insensitive comments like those of Lori Klein (R) Anthem who yelled “go back to Mexico”, to voters protesting in front of the senate building, but let’s move on and take a look at Arizona’s failed leadership from an incontestable series of facts.

Rather than using their creativity to conjure up laws that promote attrition of Arizona’s Latino and Immigrant community, Arizona’s legislature and it’s governor should be focused on attracting corporations that can bring jobs to Arizona. They should be finding a way to allow small businesses to thrive in Arizona which would stimulate the economy.

Arizona’s “leadership” has many years ago lost their way. They compromised any good intent they may have originally had as legislators for political gain. They have been much more interested in their reelection than reinforcing Arizona’s economy. The creation of unfunded mandates is one clear example of not only their hypocrisy, but their irresponsibility in legislating for Arizona.

Arizona’s lawmakers rant and rave about the cost of Immigrants to Arizona, yet any law created to date, meant to be used as an attrition tool, has been an unfunded mandate.

I interviewed Sheriff Ralph Ogden (R) Yuma, he generated a report many years before the passing of SB1070 that used specific numbers to explain the cost involved with trying to implement an SB1070 type law in his county. Taking his costs from thousands to millions based on the need to incarcerate, prosecute, and further incarcerate post conviction, and that’s only for a misdemeanor charge. Utilizing mandates within SB1070 a second arrest for unlawful presence would require felonious charges therefore creating an exorbitant amount in to the hundreds of millions to incarcerate, adjudicate and subsequently imprison these immigrants whose original intent in Arizona was simply to fill those much needed low skilled labor jobs.

Where is the hypocrisy you may ask? It’s clear that if you preface the “do you support SB1070″ question with, do you consider yourself a fiscal conservative, time, and time again, these legislators and most “conservative” Arizonans will quickly confirm both. Yet, if you follow up with the fact that SB1070 is an unfunded mandate, their blanket response is one that lends credence to the belief that these are racists whose only intent is to eliminate people who come from a cultural background that they simply cannot accept as equals.

The average Republican and legislator in Arizona will consistently respond by saying, “I don’t care what it costs, we just have to get rid of the “illegals” in Arizona.” Fiscal conservative? I truly doubt that! Multiply the “Yuma County factor” by fifteen counties in Arizona and you have a financial dilemma like one never before seen in Arizona.

Now you may be quick to spit out the usual conservative rhetoric or repeat the well known Arizona Republican mantra that was for years promoted by the now disgraced Russell Pearce. “It costs millions to medicate, educate and incarcerate illegals.” If that was even remotely true, consider the costs added from an unfunded state mandate.

There is absolutely no doubt, and as I previously pointed out, there is no refute to the argument that Arizona’s politicians are not interested in making Arizona a more sound state, but in fact are more interested in performing political stunts that will cause their reelection time and again at the expense of a deeply divided and broke Arizona.

I recently became aware of a “Recall Jan Brewer” campaign that was launched by a group of activists that are looking for a change in Arizona. Unfortunately, I know that a recall of Jan Brewer is an uphill battle, especially since you’re looking at a statewide movement that would need thousands of volunteers and hundreds of thousands of dollars to pull off. Believe me, the recall Pearce effort was a cake walk compared to what would be required to recall Arizona’s inept and damning governor, Janice K. Brewer. I wish them well, at least they’re doing something other than complaining.

Given Arizona’s apathetic voters and failed leadership on both the right and the left, perhaps Arizona has what they deserve. The way I see it, most of the legislature and the governor should all be recalled, yes even most on the left who utilize the pro immigrant topic to get reelected, yet lack the political mountain oysters to propose and push for sweeping changes.

Arizona's House of Horrors

http://www.carlosgalindo.com

As the judge laid down the sentence for convicted killer, Gary Thomas Kelley, you could hear the frustration in her voice and it even seemed like she was choking back a couple of tears. Judge Susan Brnovich is not a newcomer to the Superior Court of the State of Arizona. She previously served as a Commissioner and was subsequently appointed to the position of Judge by Governor Janet Napolitano. She entered handling domestic battles and now handles murder cases.

For Brnovich to be visibly upset by this case I feel displays the frustration she has with Arizona’s current climate. At the same time, I think that Brnovich, a Republican, thinks as a Republican would, and when Gary Thomas Kelley gave his final arguments, pleading for leniency prior to sentencing, he defiantly stated “I don’t hate Mexicans” as he pointed to the Varela family members sitting in the pews. Brnovich, prior to declaring the sentence stated “you’re justified in saying you’re not a racist, however you are a murderer.”

You see, that’s the problem with the conservative mindset. They will go out of their way to declare someone, not a racist, yet they will call them a murderer, without flinching.

However, Kelley is just that, a racist and a murderer. When Kelley approached Juan Varela on May 6, 2010, he had one thing in mind, and he articulated it loud and clear. “Go back to Mexico wetback”, Kelley said, followed by “you’re going to die today.” Varela’s 78 year old mother Paula stood by and watched as Kelley blurted profanity after profanity while he stood there unbeknownst to Varela, with a snub nose revolver hidden in his waistband.

Varela’s brother Antonio yelled at Kelley, told him to, “go home.” Kelley was interested in just one thing, murdering a wetback! According to Kelley himself and in accordance with the Defense’s opening statements witnessed by yous truly, Kelley had approached Varela aggressively, questioning whether or not Varela had been at an SB1070 rally. Varela a fifth generation American whose family lived in Texas and moved to Arizona over 40 years ago are representative of the well known phrase, “We didn’t cross the border, the border crossed us.” Varela told Kelley to go away, but Kelley would have no such thing, Kelley continued with the threats and coaxed Varela out of his yard, where he pointed the loaded weapon an fired a single shot killing Juan Varela, a husband, brother, son, uncle and little league coach.

Varela was representative of America, a U.S. Citizen, who coached little league and drove his daughter to and from school daily. He tended to his garden as he sang Christian hymns in front of his South Phoenix home.

It was amazing to watch the Phoenix Police screw up the investigation in this racially motivated crime. According to the family, within fifteen minutes of the Phoenix Police arriving, Sgt. Tommy Thompson held a press conference and announced this matter to be a dispute between neighbors and nothing more. The family was furious at Thompson and the Phoenix Police Department who not only didn’t call it right from the beginning, according to the family, they did a shoddy job on the investigation, if you can call it an investigation.

The family was equally shocked to see Vice Mayor Michael Nowakowski and councilman Michael Johnson show up at the scene. According to Antonio Varela councilman Johnson claimed that he didn’t want this incident to be seen as a racial bias crime, but just a dispute between neighbors. The family felt this was part of a coverup to avoid further enraging the South Phoenix community that would at later date suffer the loss of one of it’s unarmed residents at the hands of an accused rogue cop Richard Chrisman that had been involved in a prior incident of planting evidence on a disabled African American woman.

Arizona has been a polarized state since the attack upon the Immigrant community commenced shortly after 911. Things gradually got worse and Arizona became the pitre dish for the rest of the nation. Laws targeting Immigrants and affecting the constitutional rights of people of Mexican descent or with similar characteristics were passed through Arizona’s Republican controlled legislature like pizzas coming out of a delivery joint.

Arizona’s governor Jan Brewer signed two crucial bills that were complicit in the Varela murder. Brewer signed SB1070 and a concealed weapon law that nixed any licensing to carry a gun concealed.

By signing those laws and with the help of the media, Arizonans like Kelley felt empowered to take the law into their own hands. Although neither law had actually gone into effect, Kelley, while downing beers and perhaps listening to conservative talk radio and observing images of Jan Brewer on Fox news stating that Arizona was under invasion, coupled with pictures of individuals trekking through the desert, was sufficient to push an unstable and angry Kelley to murder. After all, Kelley felt it was his duty to lash out at what he thought was a “wetback” that had somehow invaded his country.

To add insult to injury, Latino “leaders” refused to get behind the grieving family. Some “leaders” went so far as to denounce this case, later determined to be absolutely SB1070 related and charged as a hate crime.

Lydia Guzman the ex President of Somos America and current director of Respect/Respeto said this to Nicholas Riccardi of the L.A. Times.

Lydia Guzman, a prominent local immigrants-rights activist, said she and others organizing protests against SB 1070 were wary of the case. “This guy did not get shot because he was Mexican,” Guzman said

At a time when local Arizona “activists” and “leaders” could have rubbed this awful murder in Jan Brewer’s face for signing such a law, they instead backed off from what should have been put front and center as the first SB1070 related murder, to being complicit by negating it’s existence and refusing to talk about it publicly. After all it was, without a doubt SB1070 related. The validity of the claim that this atrocious murder was directly related to Arizona’s “show me your papers” law was later verified by the defendant’s own testimony from the witness stand.

After what seemed like an eternity for the grieving Varela family, and after being kicked around by local politicians, police chiefs, mayors, vice mayors, councilmen, and those who were supposedly on their side representing the best interest of the Latino community in Arizona, the Varela’s received partial justice in the form of a guilty verdict. Well sort of, but not before going through an initial trial that ended in a deadlocked jury, that was subsequently, declared a mistrial.

An all white jury was deadlocked nine in favor of conviction and three against, when according to family members quoting prosecutor Heather Wicht, one of the three seeking to dismiss charges against the murderer stated to another jury member, (Paraphrasing) “if I had a knife, I would cut you up.” Obviously the jury deliberations had reached a climatic and polarizing moment, very similar to the current conditions in the state of Arizona nowadays, where people fall on one side or the other of the SB1070 issue, and many are willing to go to the death to support their position. Apparently that was sufficient for Judge Brnovich to call it a mistrial, which of course resulted in starting the process all over again from jury selection to a brand new trial. Which meant family members were forced to relive their pain all over again on the stand while their loved one’s killer sat there shaking his head and making faces. After all, what’s the big deal? He was just a “wetback” according to Gary Thomas Kelley.

The second trial carried the same testimony with Kelley admitting he murdered Juan Varela and confirming that Varela did not possess any weapons. The jury deliberated for a very short three hours, coming back with a guilty verdict which included aggravating factors that unfortunately did not include the racial bias enhancement charge. I truly believe that this jury did what everyone else has irresponsibly done in this case. They have wanted to lessen the outrage of the community in an attempt to depolarize an already black and white state, replacing black with brown of course.

Gary Thomas Kelley was a U.S. Citizen just like Juan Varela. The difference is, one was a cold blooded killer who hated Mexicans and felt empowered by this state’s acceptance of overt racism billed as political differences by those who are reaping the benefits, whether it’s pundits on conservative talk radio, corrupt Republican politicians or the private prison industry.

On July 5, 2011 approximately 14 months after Kelley killed Varela he received a sentence of twenty seven and a half years. A slight sentence for what many consider a premeditated murder given the fact that Kelley came over, gun concealed, with one thing in mind. To kill a “wetback.”

I spoke to Antonio Varela shortly after the sentencing. He was devastated and shared his feelings regarding the lack of support from members of the Latino community and the nightmare the family had gone through in seeking justice for his beloved brother Juan Varela. Antonio was right next to Juan when Kelley killed him and was threatened by Kelley with the same gun he used to kill Juan.

This morning I had Susie Mendoza on my Spanish language radio program. Susie is Juan Varela’s sister and has taken the lead as the matriarch of the family since Paula Varela, Juan’s mother has grown weaker and much more ill since the murder of her beloved son. Susie shared her thoughts with me and was thankful for a system that in the end worked, but didn’t necessarily give the family the relief they sought. She was thankful for the Prosecutors ardent work in prosecuting the case and appreciated the Judge’s passion as she sentenced a convicted murderer.

One thing’s for sure, the first SB1070 related murder has flown under the radar. Victim of an attempt to sweep Arizona’s dirty little open secret under the political rug. As the saying goes, “All that is needed for the forces of evil to triumph is for enough good men to do nothing.”

As the Varela family grieves every day, Latino leaders stand by idle, politicians continue furthering the great lie that Arizona is under an invasion, and every night, Arizonans like Gary Thomas Kelley settle down in front of their televisions and their radios with their beer in tow wondering what it would be like to kill a “wetback.”

Juan Varela R.I.P.

Carlos E. Galindo is a radio talk show host & political analyst conducting radio shows in both English and Spanish on four radio stations in Arizona. Mr. Galindo is a weekly contributor to KPFK 98.7 FM Los Angeles and has appeared on CNN, Univision and Telemundo as a political analyst. Mr. Galindo is also an Op-Ed columnist on Prensa Hispana Arizona. www.nospinonair.com/http://www.carlosgalindo.com

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