Politicians Taking it Too Far
Irrespective of how I or anyone else may feel about immigration and the ongoing debate about reform, there is no place in these United States for dehumanizing, demoralizing, and demeaning political rhetoric that insults the dignity and humanity of a targeted set of millions of human beings who live in this country. If I recall my history lessons, laws such as the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act, the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, and other similar laws were enacted as a result of the blood and sweat and life sacrifice of African American civil rights leaders. Beyond the need for equity at the polls, at the lunch counters, buses and schools, these laws also guaranteed the fundamental right of a human being to be treated as a human being in a country that required such a law because of its horrible past, a past when African slaves were considered property and auctioned off like cattle. I thought that these laws were passed so that those people who had the tendency to dehumanize other human beings could be kept from doing so, and that in turn, over time, this might result in improved behavior by those who were accustomed to seeing other human beings as less than humans.
David Vitter, unfortunately, doesn’t seem to care about such history. Apparently, his family values don’t apply when demonstrating to his constituents how to speak and think about immigrants. My concern here has nothing to do with partisan politics, nor anything to do with any one specific immigration agenda. Please understand me clearly when I say that this blog is simply a reply to Mr. Vitter in response to his unfortunate use of images that are offensive to me as a Latino immigrant who has lived in this country more than thirty years, learned the language, become a citizen, gone to war for it, and learned to call it home. I don’t need to feel that Mr. Vitter is required, as a public official, to accept my political or idealogical views, but I do expect common courtesy and basic human respect. This snapshot of an advertisement that Mr. Vitter put out recently is the cause for my concern. Take a look at the picture.
When I look at this ad, I think about the political history of this nation and about campaign strategies post Reconstruction in which Democratic candidates attacked Republican candidates on the basis of their love for blacks. Over one hundred years later, the tactics remain the same, and the result, unfortunately, is a continuation of apparent racial hatred and discrimination. Am I going too far in saying this? When I look at this ad, I only wonder what the intention can be and how it is that millions of Americans receive this ad. When I think about that, I feel a sad sense that it will be possible for many to believe that “illegals” all look Latino, and as a result, the Latino is the root of many of our social problems in this nation. When I look at this ad, I see the apparent insensitivity that Mr. Vitter, and others like him, display simply for political gain. Nevermind that there are issues with the word “illegal” being applied to a human being. Nevermind that there is concrete evidence for the need to encourage immigration in this nation if millions of consumer are to continue to enjoy their way of life. Nevermind that immigrants come from all over the world, speak all manners of different languages, and look like many of us who are “legal.” None of this matters to Mr. Vitter.
If these were private thoughts only Mr. Vitter was privy to, then this wouldn’t be a matter worth discussing publicly. Unfortunately, he has chosen to use a set of people to drive home his agenda, and as a result, he has cast us all as less than humans. We are, after all, according to his ad, “illegal.” Three latino men in this picture come to symbolize what an “illegal” person is in this country. For many who do not do research, or check sources, or question deeper, it will be enough to listen to Mr. Vitter’s message and become angry, and look at the next Latino person as a monster that represents an “illegal” in his community. If history tells me right, I think that Mr. Hitler used similar tactics in inciting the German community to feel anger towards the unsuspecting Jewish people before the rise of the Nazi regime.
There is deep cause for concern when people in power, such as Mr. Vitter, with millions of dollars at his disposal, uses his platform to bring home a message at the expense of a targeted set of people. I belong to this targeted set of people. As a member of this targeted set of people I am offended beyond imagination not because of the political views on immigration, or the false mainstream belief that Latinos are sucking the economy by receiving free benefits. None of that matters. Those arguments can be made by whomever, whenever, wherever. I am offended beyond imagination because those arguments use Latinos as fodder for the gore. What are we teaching our own children when we use messages such as Mr. Vitter did? It doesn’t strike me as particularly respectful or sensitive to the overall Latino community, which is politically, economically, nationally, ethnically, religiously, and ideologically diverse.
If Mr. Vitter wanted to make his point about his political views on the immigrant issue without inciting fear and offending many, he could have exercised discretion and sensitivity simply by using a diverse set of faces in his message. That he did not do so points to the possibility of intent that is harmful to our entire community. We tend to dismiss blogs like this as being overly sensitive, using the argument that such a message is harmless. The truth is, history has shown time and time again, that such messages build deep chasms between communities. Unfortunately for Latinos, the chasm that Mr. Vitter seems intent on creating, separates us all from the communities in which we live. At the end of the day, how will you know if I am an “illegal?” You might just remember Mr. Vitter’s ad and conclude that I must be in that number.
Tags: david vitter, hispanic, hispanic community new orleans, immigration, latinola, latinos, lucas diaz, new orleans, puentes