I think this is a great photo. Many of you have lost sight of the fact that we not only have a Black president with a wonderful wife, and gorgeous children that clearly represent the true fabric of America, but they are also our first family. We are living historic times! If you were able to go back in time and show this picture to Americans from a previous era, citing, that this is the first family, they would laugh at you. Given all the racism, we have come a long ways, yet, we have so much more to do!
The first family
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.
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
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.
Every day I return home from the daily grind to turn on the television and watch my recorded programs. The DVR has become an intimate friend who shares moments with me I may otherwise miss, and that might otherwise relegate me to searching through the Internet to capture tidbits of what I am looking for amongst the hundreds of thousands of items that pop up when I use a keyword search phrase.
I am sure that the hottest search word this past week is CPAC or Conservative Political Action Conference as it is otherwise known.
A tidbit about CPAC:
The conference was founded in 1973 by the American Conservative Union and Young Americans for Freedom as a small gathering of dedicated conservatives. Over the years it has grown to thousands of attendees annually. Roughly half of those in attendance in the past few years have been college-aged.
Speakers have included Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Pat Buchanan, Karl Rove, Newt Gingrich, Sarah Palin, Ron Paul, Mitt Romney, Tony Snow, Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, Allen West, Michele Bachmann, and other conservative public figures. Before, during, and after his presidency, Ronald Reagan spoke at CPAC a total of 12 times. In his 1985 speech, he referred to CPAC as his “opportunity to dance with the one that brung ya”, referring to CPAC having been a contributing factor to his political success.
CPAC has featured “groups at odds with conservative orthodoxy in years past—including the American Civil Liberties Union,” and, more recently, the gay Republican group GOProud, which has attracted major controversy.
Okay, enough of the Wikipedia crap! Let’s get to the nuts of this blog. First of all, if the damn conference couldn’t already be appropriately defined as a boatload of extremist Republicans meeting once a year to teach their hypocritical followers how to spin the their lies, it certainly can be defined in that manner this year. This year, more than ever, CPAC has gone completely extremist and anti-Obama.
As if that wasn’t bad enough the contraceptive controversy surfaced just as CPAC launched it’s misinformation conference. Boy howdy, they grabbed this one by the horns and they been riding it for all it’s worth. Some of the titles on the right wing blogosphere are “Catholic Bishops: Obama‘s Contraception Mandate Change “Unacceptable”, “Limbaugh on So-Called HHS ‘Accommodation’: There‘s no ’Compromise,‘ It’s all BS!”, “Pastor Rick Warren: “I’d Go to Jail Rather Than Cave to Contraceptive Mandate”, “Gloves Off: Sen. Rand Paul Blasts HHS Mandate as “Authoritarian” & “Totalitarian.” Well, you get the drift.
Those titles are like red meat for the right, of which there are no longer what could be considered “reasonable Republicans” if there was ever such a thing, but simply put, these are extremists who’d rather see this country divided and failed, rather than allow a successful presidency under a black president.
As they tried their best to spin the contraceptive controversy into a wedge issue, successfully getting even some Democrats to criticize the president, The 2012 candidate and sitting president Barack Hussein Obama (yes I used his middle name) did what he always does, he stood back, observed the mayhem and effectively took the wind out of their sails by modifying his mandate to accommodate the religious organizations that care less about their flock than their supposed “religious principles.”
We are into day three of CPAC and the stink emitting from the conference is intolerable. I can smell it all the way here to Arizona. It’s so bad, it’s almost overshadowing the stink coming from the Arizona State legislature. Let me clarify, I said almost, since the Arizona State Legislature is putrid with hate and rancor towards it’s underprivileged, Latinos, Immigrants, women and children.
The speakers at CPAC are as classic as the previous years, one tries to top the other, until I’m sure one of them will go so far overboard, as they always do, that everyone will act offended and supposedly repudiate the offensive rhetoric as they giggle amongst themselves at their mixers or in their hotel rooms while their wives down their contraceptives and the husband makes a pass at the housekeeper that enters the room to turn down their bed covers.
Alas, observe the Republican creature in his natural environment, it’s called CPAC.
Something stinks to high heaven
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 col
After today’s shocking and disappointing news that Board of Supervisor Mary Rose Wilcox had recommended the appointment of ex legislator David Lujan to replace outgoing Senator Kyrsten Sinema who resigned to run for the newly created district 9, I spoke to Senator Steve Gallardo who by the way has been very active as a state senator.
According to a tweet from Maricopa County reporter for the Arizona Republic and AZ Central Michelle Lee,
Supervisor Mary Rose Wilcox says she quizzed @davidlujan hard on why he missed SB1070 vote, which she said she knows ppl are concerned about
I hardly think that quizzing David Lujan “hard” over his missed SB1070 vote qualifies for holding him accountable for failing to do his job, not just as minority leader in the house, but as a Latino Democratic legislator who had claimed to oppose SB1070. Lujan outright lied to reporters stating he was out of town, only to be caught by super sleuth reporter and New Times blogger Stephen Lemons of the famed “feathered Bastard” blog. When confronted by Lemons Lujan fessed up to his lie and admitted he was AWOL enjoying a party with his parents. He had no choice but to fess up, Lemons caught him red handed promoting himself for AG at a precinct meeting.
To add insult to injury it appears Wilcox and Lujan are in cahoots to make it look like state senator Steve Gallardo supports the decision or supports Lujan’s replacement of Sinema. The fact is that Steve Gallardo (D) district 13, Leah Landrum (D) district 16, and Linda Lopez (D) district 29 all sent a letter to Wilcox outlining their support for ex legislator Ken Clark. Gallardo tells me he spoke to mary Rose Wilcox personally and expressed his discontent with the possibility of Lujan sliding into Sinema’s vacated seat.
According to another tweet from the AZ Republic reporter Lee:
#Maricopa County Supervisor Mary Rose Wilcox says @davidlujan committed to introducing bill to repeal SB1070 with @Steve_Gallardo.
Gallardo shared with me that he has not spoken with David Lujan or Mary Rose Wilcox about Lujan cosponsoring a bill to repeal SB1070. Gallardo confirmed that he has a bill to repeal SB1070 and has been garnering support from other members, but has never had a reason to talk to Lujan about it.
Gallardo is extremely offended by the suggestion or the insinuation that Lujan has anything to do with having cosponsored a bill with Gallardo.
This is just another in a long line of politically shoddy moves by Supervisor Wilcox and the Democratic party. It’s obvious the Republican party doesn’t have to do much to stay in power in Arizona with such political ineptness courtesy of Arizona’s Democratic elected officials.
One last thing, where have the “supreme” Latino leaders and “activists” been on this issue? I haven’t seen a one of them vocalize their discontent for a guy who not only slapped the Latino community in the face by not showing up to vote against SB1070, but a guy who after having had what is akin to unwanted sex with the Latino community, has now returned promising to play nice and ask next time before he bends them over.
What the heck?
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
A woman and her attorney’s just filed a lawsuit naming the Maricopa County Sheriffs Office and Joe Arpaio and numerous others as defendants. The suit alleges the woman was shackled during labor and during a cesarean section that was performed while under the custody of the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office.
In part the press release issued by Joy Bertrand, Shannon Peters and John McBee reads as follows:
DECEMBER 20, 2011
Phoenix, AZ
RE: WOMAN SHACKLED DURING LABOR SUES JOE ARPAIO
Mendiola v. Arpaio, et. al
Arizona District Court Number 11CV2512
Yesterday, through her attorneys, Miriam Mendiola-Martinez filed a federal lawsuit against Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, the Maricopa Medical Center, Maricopa County Sheriff’s Officers, and Maricopa Medical Center doctors and nurses, alleging that she was shackled by Maricopa County Sheriff’s officers during labor and after her Cesarean delivery. Her attached complaint, alleges that Sheriff Arpaio and the other defendants violated several constitutional rights, to include the Eighth Amendment rights to be free from cruel and unusual punishment and the right of prisoners to adequate health care.
The complaint states that in December 2009, while she was held as a prisoner in Maricopa County jails, Ms. Mendiola-Martinez was repeatedly shackled during her labor and while she recovered from a Cesarean birth. She also alleges that a MCSO deputy or correctional officer forced her to walk, with her hands and feet shackled, wearing only a hospital gown and with a bleeding surgery wound, out of the hospital and then back into the hospital while she was being discharged from the hospital.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Medical Association oppose the shackling of women in labor or recuperating from delivery. In 2008, in Nelson v. Norris, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals
found the shackling of women prisoners during labor to constitute cruel and unusual punishment, in violation of the Eighth Amendment.
The Arizona Department of Corrections eliminated the practice of shackling women in labor or in postpartum recovery in 2003. In 2007, the United States Marshal’s Service eliminated the practice of shackling women in labor. In 2008,
the Federal Bureau of Prisons eliminated the practice of shackling women in labor.
Ms. Mendiola-Martinez is represented by Attorneys Joy Bertrand, Shannon Peters, and John McBee.
The lawsuit is just one more example of the abuses perpetrated against the Latino community. The lawsuit outlines and alleges egregious behavior on behalf of the MCSO deputies who shackled the woman while giving birth and subsequently forced her to walk with a bleeding surgery wound.
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 and W60 AM 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 http://www.carlosgalindo.com
After last week’s release of the Department of Justice’s three year investigation, seventeen months of which was delayed by Arpaio’s typical stall tactics and outright refusal to cooperate, the Department of Homeland Security pulled the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office 287g certification which allowed them to check the legal status of suspected undocumented Immigrants.
There was some brief celebrating regarding the possibility of Joe Arpaio’s demise, perhaps one similar to the one Russell Pearce fell victim to, the will of the people working together in a concerted effort to remove a political cancer.
As the news developed rapidly many of us in the Immigrant community were met with the false hope that undocumented Immigrants would no longer be detained for processing by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
MCSO’s 287g agreement with the Feds allowed Arpaio’s detention officers to check the legal status of those detained in MCSO’s jails. The myth was that only criminal aliens were run through the Fed legal status verification system, however, even those detained for failure to present proper ID or for minor traffic violations were run through the system and detained for ICE. The damage to the Immigrant community is immeasurable. Families are split up and employers loose valued employees.
However Senator Jon Kyl wasn’t about to stand by and allow harmless Immigrants to be given a break. He immediately shipped a letter out to the Feds complaining about a possible lapse in the screening of Immigrants processed through MCSO’s jails. The Feds always willing to oblige a U.S. senator, and in order to avoid bringing on the wrath of the Republicans and those hell bent on making the Immigrants the scapegoats for this nation’s problems, responded with a letter outlining their plans for closing that void that might have been left by denying Joe Arpaio the 287g certification and access to the secure communities program.
In a detailed letter to Senator Kyle the DHS assured the senator that a gap in coverage due to MCSO losing their 287g certification would not occur. DHS indicated in part:
Although ICE has terminated its 287(g) agreement with MCSO, ICE will continue to advance our immigration enforcement and public safety efforts in Maricopa County. ICE has dedicated 50 federal immigration officers to screen, identify, apprehend, and remove criminal aliens found in the jails of Maricopa County. These ICE officers will perform the work previously conducted by 287(g) officers and will ensure that criminal aliens and other removable public safety threats are not released into the community. These federal officers will have full access to Secure Communities and will continue this work until such time as DOJ is satisfied that MCSO has remedied the unlawful practices outlined in the DOJ report. In short, there will be no gap in immigration enforcement in Maricopa County.
I’m sure that Kyl was thrilled that the good people of Maricopa County would not be at risk of harm from their dishwashers, landscapers, housekeepers and cooks.
Meanwhile families will continue to be separated and you might just find that the sushi or the steak that you love to eat might taste a little different. Well, that’s based on the fact that there’s now a new cook working at your favorite restaurant and the guy who normally cooks your food in that fine food restaurant might have been picked up for a traffic violation and is being held for processing by an ICE officer in Joe’s jails.
Jon Kyl
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.
Well Cain is out. We knew it was coming. Simply put, Herman Cain isn’t presidential material. We know it has nothing to do with the color of his skin, given that we have a black president. No, Cain’s problem was, amongst many, the fact that he wasn’t up to speed on the “issues.” Put aside the womanizing and the lying, which in the past, have actually been qualifiers for the presidency, simply put, Cain is a political dunce.
I couldn’t help but visualize Cain with 3×5 index cards in his hands as he struggled with the Libya issue in a recent interview with the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel editorial board. He was also visualizing those index cards, and unfortunately for him, his brain couldn’t access his memory banks quick enough, causing him to have what many call a Jan Brewer or Rick Perry moment.
As Cain drew upon his memory he muttered:
“Okay, Libya,” said Cain, glancing up. “President Obama supported the uprising, correct? President Obama called for the removal of [Muammar] Gaddafi. Just wanted to make sure we’re talking about the same thing before I say, ‘Yes, I agreed. No, I didn’t agree,’” said Cain.
“I do not agree with the way he handled it for the following reason,” Cain started, before cutting himself off. “Nope, that’s a different one.” Cain shifted in his chair, adjusted his jacket and looked up again.
“I got all this stuff twirling around in my head,” he added.
It was a painful moment even for me. I think most of us were aware that this was the start of his demise. As I previously stated, Cain’s womanizing didn’t seem to be a problem for the GOP or the faithful Tea Baggers that yearned to see a black man give the other black man occupying the white house a run for his money. It was amazing to watch these hypocrites, men and women alike, paint the women who reported Cain’s extracurricular activities as promiscuous vixens.
Keep in mind that when someone runs for the presidency, their entire family is subject to scrutiny, and even if they themselves are squeaky clean, as in Gloria Cain’s case, they have to deal with the candidates misdeeds, missteps and misconduct.
I Imagine the pressure for Gloria Cain was just too much to bear. I don’t doubt one bit that Gloria was aware of Herman’s sexual promiscuity, many women in long marriages are well aware of their husbands infidelity and choose to ignore it for the sake of preserving their marriage. For God’s sake, if you’re married to a man for 43 years you know his every whim, desire and faults.
Eventually Cain’s sexual appetite proved to be his demise. One too many accusations. Ginger White and his alleged 13 year affair proved to be the final nail in his political coffin.
Cain eventually decided that he would allow Gloria to decide whether or not he would leave the race for the GOP nomination. Why does the song I’m Leaving It All Up To You” come to mind?
Gloria’s decision was loud and clear. Gloria said no more, and the Cainster hung up his political apron, much dirtier than the one he wore while running Godfather pizza.
Remember, I said Cain was a political dunce, I never said he isn’t a greedy S.O.B. that has lied and cheated his way to the top. Cain suspended his campaign. He didn’t dissolve his campaign! The difference is, that when you suspend your campaign you can continue to raise and receive funds to pay off any outstanding debts, and of course, the clincher, Cain get’s matching federal funds next year. In layman’s terms, matching federal funds means you and I will be handing Cain some of our hard earned bucks, also referred to as taxpayer money.
During Cain’s long drawn out and often babbling campaign suspension speech in which his wife was acknowledged by the mostly Tea Party supporters by chanting “Gloria, Gloria Gloria”, Cain announced the launch of a new project, a website.He plugged the site www.thecainsolutions.com as if he were plugging his infamous and flawed 9-9-9 plan.
Cain doesn’t want to have to return the millions received as he rose in the polls touting his 9-9-9 plan, I suspect he’ll turn his campaign into a PAC, which is of course allowed under FEC rules. That allows Cain to stay in the political manipulation game by using his political action committee.
So the Herman will go back to being Herman! Womanizing, lobbying, and rubbing shoulders with those who buy politicians like him.
His relationship with the Koch brothers I suspect will get better. After all, he followed orders well and did exactly what he was told. The Koch brothers ties to his campaign were obvious. Mark Block, “the smoker” from the Cain campaign youtube video also worked alongside Cain lobbying for Americans For Prosperity, one of the Koch brothers advocacy organizations from 2005 to 2011. Block was Cain’s campaign manager and served as overseer for the Koch brothers.
Cain has always known his place around rich white men. He learned it from his father who was a chauffeur for Coca Cola’s president Robert Woodruff.
Herman Cain is living proof that the good old “boy” system is alive and well, and the masters of that system are the major players in the Grand Old Party.
Nein, Nein, Nein I did not have sex with these women
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.
Listen to our live radio broadcast every Friday from 5-7 PM on The JOLT Tucson 1330 AM or via the web on http://www.carlosgalindo.com
I was reading a news story today which I’m sure has repeated itself throughout the United States over the years. The difference is that in this case, the young man left explicative letters behind. Joaquin Luna committed suicide out of frustration and desperation because of his legal status in the United States.
Luna was brought here at a very young age and was fully integrated into what we consider the fabric of America. He did all the right things. He kept his nose clean, studied hard, and had dreams of becoming an engineer. The typical American kid with the typical American dream. However, that’s exactly what it was, a dream. Joaquin Luna was a Dreamer in a multifaceted sense of the word.
Young undocumented students are commonly referred to as Dreamers based on the proposed “Dream Act” legislation that would allow these kids to come out of the shadows and either enlist in the military or attend a post secondary school. They’re your teenagers friends, your neighbors, perhaps the kid who on weekends mows your lawn as he helps his dad out in his landscaping business. They are all around you! They speak perfect English. They’re bright and articulate, and for the most part, well informed. They are up on political issues. Well, for them, political awareness is survival.
Maybe that’s exactly what frustrated Joaquin so. Having the knowledge that last year the Dream Act failed by a handful of votes. Knowing he was about to graduate from high school and facing that very real fear that he wouldn’t be able to afford to attend a university because of the prohibitive costs for non residents, and knowing that he couldn’t work based on his social security number deficiency. If he worked, he would have had to use a false identification which as he well knew, is a crime. Imagine the frustration, loving the United States with all your heart, feeling like a patriotic American, yet living with the open secret that you are undocumented. I also want you to imagine feeling like an American, yet having to hear yourself described by extremists as an illegal, a leach, a dirty wetback who came here to live off welfare and become an Obama Democrat.
It’s no wonder that a young fragile mind facing such a haunting future would have felt that the only solution was to end his life. There are very few resources available for these young people. Without a social security number they can’t seek psychological assistance or even counseling from the normal channels that many of us Americans would traverse.
They’re caught in the middle, and they’re hearing the hype from both sides. Many pro Immigrant groups and “leaders” give them very little hope. Claiming instead that their President abandoned them and that they doubt Obama will do anything to help them or other undocumented Immigrants in their struggle to adjust their Immigration status. While at the same time they watch the anti-Immigrant groups aggressively lobby to shut not only the borders, but any door that may lend itself as a viable option for relief for these Dreamers. The politicians often refer to these Dreamers in their debates and in speeches on the campaign trail. They have masterfully polished the Immigration issue to get elected and reelected using all “illegals” as scapegoats for the nation’s problems.
As the years grind on and more doors are shut to these Dreamers, will we see a growing trend of frustration and acts of desperation on behalf of these Dreamers that for all practical purposes are great Americans, well, except for one slight problem, they were brought here unlawfully as toddlers by their parents from a country they don’t remember and have never returned to?
The only thing young Joaquin left behind was his frustrations and shattered dreams as an “illegal”, all penned on paper for the world to see.
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. Arizona.
Listen to our live radio broadcast every Friday from 5-7 PM on The JOLT Tucson 1330 AM or via the web on http://www.carlosgalindo.com
Shocked, is the way I would describe my reaction when I received news that King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz al-Saud of Saudi Arabia declared that women in that country would receive full suffrage. This is a telling moment for oppressed women in Saudi Arabia and other countries in the Middle East that treat women as second class citizens. To have to beg a male family member to be allowed to apply for a job, to be denied the right to drive and certainly to be denied full suffrage by denying women the right not only vote, but to hold office is to treat a woman as subhuman.
“We refuse to marginalize the role of women in Saudi society and in every aspect, within the rules of Sharia,” Abdullah said, referring to the Islamic law that governs many aspects of life in the kingdom.
So Saudi women can now vote and run for office, however, as we all know, one thing is to say it, declare it, even make it law, another is to implement and permit the execution of the law. There are factions involved here that will use strong arm tactics to stop women from running for office, which will certainly include threatening the family, shaming male members of the family and even murder to preserve the status quo in an overtly male dominated society.
In any event this is only the beginning of the end for the Saudi women who will still need to beg a male member of the family to be allowed to work at the very polls they may be allowed to vote at.
Women will also have to obtain a male driver to drive them to the polls or to the local municipality where they may serve as a council member if they’re able to overcome the election fraud that is sure to prevail.
I would say that these women who today live under an oppressive Saudi male dominated regime, are the pioneers of suffrage and will encounter resistance very similar to that which women in the United States encountered from a chauvinistic male dominated democracy.
I say to them, أتمنى لكم التوفيق وبارك الله فيكم, which for you who have embraced and respect full suffrage, translates to, “I wish you the best and may God Bless you.”
Now I’m left wondering how long it will take for them to break the glass ceiling that women here in the United States continue to struggle with?
Full Suffrage Granted To The Burqa Wearing Women
Carlos E. Galindo is a radio talk show host & political analyst conducting radio shows in both English and Spanish on five 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 and the Tucson Citizen. Arizona. www.nospinonair.com/http://www.carlosgalindo.com
Listen to our live radio broadcast every Friday from 5-7 PM on The JOLT Tucson 1330 AM or via the web on www.nospinonair.com
When I was advised that Bachmann would be scurrying into town, I decided to skedaddle on over to Sheriff Joe’s office to see what she had to say, and of course to keep the mainstream media honest. I didn’t figure anyone would ask the hard questions, or at least a question that would put her on the hot seat, particularly regarding the fact that we have millions of undocumented workers in the United States. What would she do with them if she won the most prized post as leader of the world? Of course I knew she wouldn’t answer directly when asked.
Nobody wants to admit that we are completely dependent on the low skilled undocumented labor that we import from Mexico. Nobody wants to admit that we are complicit to the existence of the undocumented workers. Everyone wants to live in denial and in the houses built by these “culprits”. They want to stuff their faces with the vegetables picked by them. They want to enjoy their manicured lawns mowed and trimmed by them, and they want to enjoy their shiny cars after going through the local car wash spiffed up by these undocumented car wash employees. The list goes on and on of jobs filled by the undocumented worker that an average American absolutely will not fill, and, if they were to work that job, they wouldn’t last.
So Bachmann answered my question like any other politician would. You know? Using code words meant to incite emotion from Immigrant haters and deniers, and meant to make her appear responsible and in tune with the topic. “We have to secure the border first”, “We have to remove those magnets that draw them here.” Blah, blah, blah.
Bachmann proved she was just another talking head out of touch with the undocumented Immigration issue, seeking to fill a job she just is absolutely not qualified to fill. She did however, look like Sheriff Joe’s drooling lap dog, looking for his endorsement by touting his stardom and by winking her enlarged eyes while converting her cynical smirk to a beauty queen smile.
As for Sheriff Joe, when asked whether he would give Bachmann his endorsement, he responded by saying that he hadn’t decided yet. Ah, Sheriff Joe, always the astute politician. Why would he commit to endorsing one candidate so early in the game when he could possibly be courted by other candidates as the Republican field narrows down to two viable candidates for the Republican nomination to replace the black man sleeping in the White House.
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 and the Tucson Citizen. www.nospinonair.com/http://www.carlosgalindo.com
Listen to our live radio broadcast every Friday from 5-7 PM on The JOLT Tucson 1330 AM or via the web on www.nospinonair.com
