Thursday, April 4, 1996
Recent police violence gives white, middle-class ameriKa
eyewitness to opressionBy david aguilar
Let’s get into it! Kurtis Franklin and Tracy Watson of the
Riverside County Sheriff’s Department obviously felt threatened and
sensed extreme danger for all ameriKans that hedges were to be
trimmed, pools to be built, lawns to be mowed, privileged kids to
be cared for and offices to be cleaned. That must be the reason why
21 "illegal immigrants" were hunted down like animals by the
Riverside County Sheriff’s Department on April 1, 1996. Then,
Leticia Gonzalez Gonzalez and Enrique Funez were beaten like
defenseless dogs.
All for what? For simply trying to get work. Let me emphasize
the word "work," because that’s exactly what they would be doing.
Not competing with ameriKans for jobs. But working harder, for less
pay, longer hours, without benefits and without the respect they
deserve from their employers or ameriKan "citizens" who feel they
are superior to "immigrants."
Now, let’s examine the word "immigrant." In the united states,
"immigrant" is a nasty word, an insult, a derogatory term, used to
label Mexicans and Latinos. In other words, "immigrant" is a nice
way to say wetback or beaner. Pale faces tend to forget who is the
real immigrant, who the original invaders were. While on the flip
side, the term "foreigner" has been given to white Canadians and
white Europeans  a much nicer term that does not carry the
same stigma or social status as the word "immigrant."
Now, to be worthy enough to receive the label of foreigner, one
must be of the right complexion, the right economic class and the
right last name. With these attributes, a "foreigner" often can
integrate completely and is able to compete with ameriKans in the
job market on the same playing field almost immediately. So, who’s
taking the jobs from ameriKans? "Immigrants" or "foreigners"? Take
a guess.
So, then why did Franklin and Watson do it? Why did these brave
law enforcement officers beat down these innocent, defenseless and
beautifully brown human beings? Remember, before they are labeled
by the media as Mexican nationals, aliens or immigrants, they are
human beings  living flesh and blood.
The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department attempted to take away
their humanity and treated them as a subspecies, as inferior, as
unworthy of life. Leticia Gonzalez Gonzalez told Spanish news
reporters she couldn’t understand why someone wanted to kill her.
I’ll say it again  KILL her! Can any of us even begin to
imagine what it is like to believe someone is trying to kill us
simply for trying to better the lives of ourselves and our
families? Only in ameriKa.
I think I know why they did it. Could they be scared of these
same Mexican "immigrants" who sustain and perpetuate  by
providing cheap labor  the nasty cycle of capitalism, which
these officers claim they fight so hard to protect and serve? Maybe
they’re scared of what the Mexican and Latino "immigrants" bring to
this country: a new culture, new ideas, new thoughts, a new social
order  perhaps displacing the sheriffs from the security they
cherish.
Are they scared that Spanish will become the dominant language
in California? Do they fear that their exploiting, capitalist,
imperialist, racist culture will be replaced or ultimately
rejected? I don’t know. They’re obviously comfortable with beating
another human being like an uncaged animal; this reveals what
cowards they really are.
This attitude toward "immigrants" has grown and manifested
itself in support for Proposition 187, the increasing attack on
bilingual education and the backlash against affirmative action.
And now, the April 1 beatings by Riverside sheriffs. But, violence
isn’t always physical. When you cast a vote for Proposition 187,
that’s a vote for violence.
People were shocked! But I don’t see why. If there is anyone who
has never heard of the Black Panther Party For Self Defense; if
there is anyone who has never heard of the Brown Berets; if there
is anyone who has never heard rap or who has never seen any of the
"hood" genre films; then maybe they could be authentically
shocked.
But the truth is that organizations like the Black Panthers, the
Brown Berets and the Young Lords focused on defending and
protecting their people because they had no choice. Police abuse
and brutality are the reasons these organizations started and
continued to grow. Police abuse and brutality has been a reality
for those of us with darker skin, lower incomes and thicker accents
for literally hundreds of years.
People of Color have hollered with anger for a long time, way
before Rodney King, and way before April 1. It is just now that the
video camera has become an ally for People of Color. White,
middle-class people who live in their security-protected houses
with 2.2 kids are now forced to see what it is we have been angry
about.
Before the video camera, the white, middle-class: A) had no idea
what was going on, B) heard the screaming voices of People of Color
but didn’t believe them, C) heard them but didn’t care or D)
enjoyed what they saw and heard. Whatever it may have been won’t
necessarily change unless the white, middle class people want to,
or we make them.
But don’t be shocked. This country was founded on racism and the
oppression of People of Color. From the slaughter of Native
Americans to the enslavement of Black Africans to Manifest Destiny,
which validated stealing land from the ancestors of today’s
"illegal immigrants," racism is the cornerstone of a capitalistic
ameriKa. This country needs racism in order to function
"properly."
So now a lot of people are mad, just plain angry at what they
saw. Why are we mad? Are we mad because of what we saw? Or are we
mad for what some refused to see 30, 40, 100 years ago? "Immigrant"
bashing, police abuse and brutality are like apple pie in this
country. It looks like 21 Mexicans got a large piece of the pie
last Monday.
aguilar is a third-year history student with a specialization in
Chicana/o studies.