"Racist Republicans on Campus..."

Palousitics has obtained an e-mail exchange between the WSU Young Democrats and Sean Gallegos, an Academic Coordinator in the Department of Comparative Ethnic Studies and a former Democratic candidate for state representative (the original e-mail can be viewed on the WSU Young Democrats Yahoo mailing list here):

Sean,

I think your efforts to highlight immigrations issues are great, though I must disagree with the way this is being approached. These border/immigration issues are complex. Calling the republicans and those who support the fence racists does nothing to bring about rational and education discussion about the issues involved. There were 64 democrats who voted for the fence. For many people if they just look at the issue briefly they will support the fence as they will think: "people are coming across the border illegally so why not build a fence to stop this?" Of course is much more complex than this but calling people racists is not going to even allow a real discussion to begin let alone change any minds. I respectful ask us all to consider how we can best engage students who are not that politically aware or motivated (a majority of students). Generally, positive messages are better than negative ones.

Instead of calling the republicans racists, why not have a thank a farm worker celebration. With pictures of them working hard in the fields of state harvesting apples, cherries, etc. Show the contribution they make. Students will see the pictures of these hard workers and also the republicans and their fence, who do you think they will have more sympathy for?

Creating a real discussion is hard and take a lot (a lot!) of patience but in the end it creates more results than just shouting down the other side.

Gallegos' response:

Though I can appreciate your sincerity in asking me not to banter around words like "RACIST." I can inform you better had you attended the meeting in question. Or, if you had been involved in information gathering or a single protest last spring which hilighted this issue, long before now... But again it's hard to inform those who did not attend. And quite frankly I don't care how many Democrats voted in favor of the wall my argument is not simply that the wall crossed the southern boarder is predicated on xenophobia, race hatred, and fear mongering... But had you read the title of the e-mail more closely you would have read the "on Campus" portion, where in you might, (I'm not saying it's mandatory mind you... BUT YOU MIGHT) have considered the reason why I used that particular language. Because as we all know (Republicans included) that them duplicating said boarder fence "ON CAMPUS" is to incite hatred toward local Chicanos...WHETHER OR NOT THEY ARE UNDOCUMENTED... That my friend is racist, behavior... Now lets take it a step further if you don't mind... Say by using language such as anchor babies... Plague rats... Locusts... Or my personal favorite "terrorists"... that pushes people on either side to violence as happened in rural New York state where two Chicanos were killed by the hysteria over the "INVADING FORCE" that then propagates reactionary violence from Chicanos who are fearing for their lives thus pitting one race against another, that my friend is RACISM!

You can't and I'm speaking here mind you as a voting member of the State Central Committee, where I see this type of behavior all of the time but you can not continue to call a Giraffe... a Lion, simply hoping not to offend... Our fear of offending the Republican Majority has lead us to record deficits, A war based on lies and more hatred of people of another color, THE LOSS OF HABEAS CORPUS, The Racist and systematic oppression of peoples of Muslim and Middle Eastern Decent, One Nation under surveillance, and let us not forget the brutalization of Chicanos and Latinos for fear of their growing numbers and because they want a better way of life (Don't even get me started on the fact that the Treaty of Guadalupe Y Hildago was broken by the US government 2 months after it was signed. Based on Manifest Destiny which is twisted modern version of the Divine Right of Kings.) So the US in breaking there treaty has no more claim over that land, as they violated the treaty why should Mexicans not break the same treaty in response or is this another case of the US can do what ever it wants but it also gets to tell the world what to do?Furthermore, THE WHOLE "IMMIGRATION PROBLEM" was created by NAFTA so the wall isn't even all that much about keeping people out (BECAUSE BELIEVE ME IT WON'T) But it is really the governments way of attempting to blindfold the US population from the reality of what it is doing in Mexico based on NAFTA. As if the WALL is a giant blindfold... IE... "Your Safe Go Back To Sleep..."

Or look at it like this Bruce... Ask yourself how many walls have worked as a result of fear... Can you name one? Great Wall of China? Nope... Berlin Wall? Nope...Pakistan/India? Nope... Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland? Nope... Palestinian/Israeli? Nope...how about the one between Turkey and Greece? Nope not that one either. So then... Why? Maybe because the Republicans know that if they Demonetize the Chicanos and use them as this years boogyman much like Muslims were in 2002 and Homosexuals were in 2004 then the Republicans can get out of having to talk about failures in Iraq, the fact that every child has been left behind, a few of them have even been touched on the behind, Stem Cell research...Nope they don't want to talk about that... So in showing easy bigotry like the Nazi's did against the Jews... The Republicans are using Chicanos to try and stay in power. That too is racist.

So I'm sorry Bruce if the term "RACISTS" offends your delicate sensibilities but look at it this way the fact is the wall will by its end cost the tax payers (including Undocumented Mexicanos most of which pay taxes that they can't ever collect their federal withheld, which goes back to the government to waste)roughly 1.6 Billion that's even more of a deficit which means even less monies for social programs. And that is also Racist...

So I guess what I'm trying to say is "WE HAVE RACIST REPUBLICANS ON CAMPUS..."

I hope I didn't make this discussion too real for you.

Sean