We’ve been talking in class about immigration and I was making the point the other day about how immigrants are so often viewed not simply second class people, but just as often as not fully human.
I regularly read comments to articles on web sites in which people reference Mexican immigrants by using words such as “scum” and “animals.” It doesn’t take much empathy for any of us to see people who migrate as simply trying to build a better life for themselves, much like the immigrant ancestors of the people making the bigoted comments. And even if we want to “send them all back home,” why words such as “scum”? But people often follow their leaders and here is a story of one leader that doesn’t seem to be setting a very positive example for his constituents and employees. While I don’t know the entire story, and so far be it from me to weigh in on this very heavily as though I do, it does seem as though he’s not really interested in the livelihoods and well-being of the Latinos in his community.
Check out the article: “Connecticut mayor apologizes for ‘taco’ comment”
Oh dear.
Well, this man certainly needs to learn some empathy. While the news report was rather vague as to the details of the mayor's comment, it's clear that the Latinos in his town are in rather dire straits. How impudent must one be, as the mayor of his own town, to say that he will help the citizens by eating a taco? Did he think that was funny? Surely, I believe that everything can be laughed at, but coming from a man in such a position of authority and governance, it's a smack in the face.
Those kind of remarks dehumanize; they reduce people to the little more than dregs of the earth. For this man to have clearly felt no compunction for the plight of his Latino brothers and sisters makes me think he ought to be stripped of his mayorship. I don't know enough about this to really make an informed judgment on this man's character, though.
Regardless, the mayor's comment is disgusting–and look how frenzied he is in trying to cover his own ass! It's like Santorum and the blaaa people all over again.
The comments made by the mayor are incredibly stupid and I truly believe he should be forced to resign from his position. Mexicans are treated negatively within our society and I do not see why. Many of them work much harder than the average American and do not have half the things that they have. Why do we keep kicking people down who are just trying to make an honest living doing jobs that many Americans wouldn't take. Is our ego just too big? We should actually be thanking them because they are an integral part to our society. By doing these jobs, they are keeping our economy afloat during these hard times. Without them, we would be in an even deeper hole. Mexicans are also leaving everything behind to come to the United States to better their lives and most importantly, their families’ lives. I admire their determination and it should motivate other Americans to work with the passion and drive that they have. People need to realize the overall positive impact that Latin Americans have on our economy before it is too late.
I do not take back his apology because he is only doing so to keep his image safe. It is completely disrespectful to such a hard working group of people. The only way he can make up for it is by doing something good for the entire Latin American community. If I was Latin American, I would be very hesitant to take back his apology because it is not sincere. I understand people make mistakes but this could have been very easily avoided. He used the stress of the situation as the excuse to why he made the taco comments and quite frankly, I think that is a weak excuse. As a mayor, you should have the knowledge that you have to be careful with what you say because you represent an area and you should not bring any negative light to it. You should always think before you speak especially when you hold a government position. These comments could come back to hurt him if he were to explore higher government positions.
In conclusion, we should be more thankful to the Latin Americans who work so hard everyday and get paid minimum wage to preform tedious but important jobs. The ignorance of the mayor really upsets me because many other Americans have the same feelings toward Mexicans but they truly have no knowledge of how important they are to our society. I just think about being put in other people’s shoes and the opportunity to be born in this country is a great privilege. We should not knock anyone who is willing to sacrifice so much just to want what we have.
What came out of the mayor's mouth was, in all sense of the word, ignorant. It was stereotypical and shameful, and while I don't doubt that he regrets what he said, it is going to be extremely hard for him to convince the Hispanic community of that. His apology, like that of many politicians, is only existent so that he can save face. I wonder if he honestly does not understand what a part immigrants play in our society. Like we learned the other day… without them, we are just an ordinary country with a crappy schooling system. We should be honored that people from much more "intelligent" countries want to come here and study and make a difference in our society. We should be welcoming them with open arms. They help give America a good name, and they don't even ask to be recognized for that–they only ask to be welcomed into our country. Is that so much to ask?
As for illegal immigrants, the guy who freaked out in that short clip that we saw does have a point… they are illegal. I think that it's impressive that we have policies and tolerance at all for illegal immigrants. Something about this system needs to be changed, whether it's changing the immigration laws or by having a zero tolerance policy. I frankly think that it makes a joke out of the government when we debate about the rights of illegal immigrants. I do think that immigrants are imperative to our society, but I also believe that they should enter this country in a legal way, no matter how hard it be.
However, this raises an interesting question. What about the rights of the children of illegal immigrants? Especially the ones that were too young to do anything but sneak into the country with their parents? Should we really be punishing them? I think that a more lenient policy ought to be developed for that.
Immigrants get so much crap from Americans, but why? For doing the work that Americans are too lazy to do? The welfare rate of America is at its peak and it is frankly disgusting how many people are mooching off of the government and us, the tax payers. Immigrants don't come here to mooch. They come here seeking opportunity, whether it's working in a field 12 hours a day or working in an office. No one sees them complaining, so why should we complain? They are HELPING OUR ECONOMY. And the sad part is that so many Americans DO refer to immigrants as "scum" and words of the like. It's almost like Americans think that they are unintelligent and dumb just because they don't speak our language fluently, they don't even think of them as people. The funny part is that these Mexican immigrants who are doing "grunt work" are more ambitious than most Americans. They got here. Even if it was illegally, I think that it says something that these people risked their lives to attain something that they wanted. And not only did they risk their lives, but they survived. If you think about it, immigrants, ESPECIALLY illegal immigrants in America are the fittest. And the world has proved to live by 'survival of the fittest.' Maybe THIS is why in thirty years, we will be minorities.
“To heal the community”? I don’t think he even realizes the issues in his own community. For one thing, he’s being completely ignorant to the abuse that the police are showing to the Latino. And his comment, no matter how he makes it seem to be light, is offensive to Latinos. It’s practically the same thing he mentioned of how people discriminate against him for being Italian. However, I wonder if he’s really being discriminated about his Italian heritage or he’s just making up another excuse to hide the fact that he said something hurtful to an abused Latino community. Because Maturo mentions how the community should also be more aware of the police that were sent to prison and try to support their families, and then he disregards the Latino issue as a minor issue. Al though I do agree that the arrested polices’ families are probably going through some tough issues with their family member in prison or whatever discrimination that’s being thrown their way, the Latino community shouldn’t be pushed a side like it never happened. Plus, some of the Latinos have suffered a whole lot worse than being sent to prison; some have been beaten, humiliated, and even accused of false crimes. How’s their family dealing with their family members being treated like that? Well, I’m sure they are suffering just as much as the abusive polices’ families or possibly more since they have to live in discrimination constantly in a community where the Latino percentage is so low. Another thing I’m curious about though that comes to mind, what if what the mayor said was a simple ‘mistake’? Rude, I agree but with JoePa being on everybody’s mind, I had this thought of how JoePa made a mistake and owned up to. The mayor also made a mistake (obviously a different mistake, but a mistake nonetheless) and he did own up to his error of speak and tried to justify it. So what I’m trying to say is, if he really did not mean what he said, and regrets what he said, then shouldn’t people forgive him? I’m not saying to ‘forgive and forget’, but merely accept what he said and move on, while having a different opinion of him. Because isn’t that how alumni and current PSU students see Joe? Before the scandal, JoePa was the father of PSU (still is) but once the scandal became public, everybody’s opinion of JoePa changed after that. It either changed for better or for worse, or maybe for some, their opinion hasn’t changed at all, they just have new information about JoePa. Well then that’s what I’m trying to say about the mayor of that community has done. He made possibly made a mistake when he said that comment, so shouldn’t we forgive him?
It’s kind of disgusting to think about how this Mayor (Maturo) seems so blatantly biased (and potentially even racist) and has managed to be a in a position of power for as long as he has. The situation started out bad enough stemming from the harsh discriminatory treatment of Latinos in the Connecticut community by police officers who are supposed to be there to protect us, and I really don’t think it helps the credibility of Maturo’s apology for his taco quip after showing his support for the police officers who were put under arrest for their questionable practices.
One would have to think that for a person to be elected for a higher-profile job like that of a mayor they would have to show some sense of compassion for their fellow man, and empathy for the hardships people have to go through. The statement that Maturo threw out in his interview about helping the Latinos in his community by going home and eating tacos is immoral on multiple levels; his nonchalant and somewhat detached remark shows what seems to be an apparent neglect of the problems being faced by Latinos in the community he is supposed to be leading. The comment also carried an offensive stereotype with his assumption of the diet of the victims of his statement.
I also think that it’s interesting to look at how he tried to save himself with his follow-up remarks of how he himself is Italian and is victim to stereotypes as well (upon saying this he offers some lack-luster examples of the kind of “hate” he has been exposed to). This seems like the go to reaction for any political figure, and it seems kind of immoral.
The fact that the Latinos of the community in the story say they accept Maturo’s apology (even though they acknowledge the original remarks made as being racially charged), seems a little puzzling to me. They also went on to say that “Maturo can’t be trusted easily” , which if I was in their situation I would think I wouldn’t trust him ever again. The fact that he kind of backed up the police officers in this whole situation, even after apologizing for his racist remarks would be the last straw for me.
I would hope that Maturo faces some sort of punishment for all of this, to see him get away with all of this would be sort of unnerving. It’s a shame to see this kind of thing happen in a country that likes to think it’s so progressive, and it’s apparent that a lot of work needs to be done to reach a better society for all.
While I do admittedly feel that the value of “political correctness” is vastly overemphasized in today’s society as a whole, I will assert that comments such as the ones made by East Haven mayor Joseph Maturo have no place in the realm of political office. Because this man was elected the head of this particular community, his statement is utterly inappropriate, as he is expected to represent the ideals of the community and to see to it that these ideals are upheld by the police force.
As a young man of Italian descent, I, personally, would not be devasted by comments regarding the stereotypes of my ethnicity when they are made in the right, often humorous, context. I believe that the differences we see among one another in our genetic makeup and our complexion are blatantly obvious in some cases, and to simply ignore these differences is unnecessary and sometimes even foolish. To observe these differences is a mere natural characteristic of our consciousness. I will assert, however, that if the “meatballs and spaghetti” comments were made by an elected official, especially in light of recent and ongoing discrimination of my people by police, I would certainly feel personally attacked.
Over the past 50 years American society has indeed come a long way from the widespread discrimination that was commonplace prior to the Civil Rights Movement. Yet despite this progress, every race and ethnicity continues to face some resistance and opposition from varying viewpoints. This avoidance to accept those whom are different seems to be a natural occurrence, considering how often it takes place, but we have also seen throughout history and maybe even in our own lives that to live in peace with one another is a possibility. This achievement, in my opinion, is the ultimate goal of our existence on Earth. But regardless of what could be, I intend to focus on what IS. Resistance to other races, though morally unsound, can be the result of the intimate experience of individuals, but we all must be aware that this resistance has no place in the functions of our governing body. In order to exemplify our societal value of equality among all individuals, the political structure of our federal, state, and local governments must not be tainted by personal bias.
Furthermore, I would like to commend the efforts of the FBI in investigating these occurrences in East Haven, CT, as they attempt to eradicate this misuse of power by the city’s police force. In addressing this issue as an immediate concern, the federal government is taking the steps necessary to avoid a potential uprising of the American public, or in this case of the Latino community, in favor of a diplomatic approach to correct this mistreatment before it spirals out of control.
Well, first of all, I think that the comment made wasn't as bad as people or the media make it out to be. I'm hispanic and if someone were to tell me that they will eat tacos to help me out, I would get offended I'll probably laugh at them and call them idiots. But anyways, I think that people are getting angry over the comment made when they should be getting angry at the actions taken by the mayor and the community's police department. Sure it's bad to say that all hispanics eat tacos, or all italians eat spaghetti, but they are just common stereotypes that we should be used to right now because they have been around for so long. We shouldn't be upset because of what the man said, but we should be upset because of what he did. For example, he let all of this go on and when asked how will he help diminish it, he took it as a joke and like nothing is going on. Thats the reason we should be upset. He is letting people slide and letting the police department do whatever they want to do. This is a problem because he acts as if latinos weren't even harassed when in the article and video, clearly it shows harassment. No typical police officer would be so anal as to enter a restaurant and ask for Id's…Are you kidding me? you must be a real douche bag or a fucking annoying person to be doing that on a weekly basis. Also, random random illegal searches and assaulting people who are already handcuffed? Wow that makes you a tough guy to beat up someone with their hands tied hahaha this world gets funnier by the second. And then they have the nerve to try to cover it up on the reports? Just cause someone didn't get laid last night or cause their wife left them doesn't give them the right to beat up someone who is already in custody. I don't get why people do this type of shit. It's REALLY UNNECESSARY like for real. I think that everyone is more concerned on what the mayor said than the ACTUAL problem occurring which is the mistreatment of races, and also the corruption of the police dept., and most importantly, the stupidity of the mayor. How dumb do you have to be to say "oh I feel sorry for the police officer's families at this moment" You gotta be a real dick, or maybe you just don't think before you talk. How can you feel sorry for the people creating all of the problems? C'mon we all got to use our heads more often and think more cautiously before blurting out stupid statements like that. This all comes to say that I don't think that his comment is the real problem, but what he didn't do to stop this and what the pigs did to make other people's lives miserable.
Ok so, this statement is obviously not ok. I realized after i finished reading it that i had this look on my face like..wtf? did he really just say that? I know we all say things we that aren't politically correct and sometimes put our foot in our mouth, but come on. Maybe things slip out in front of your friends and family that you wouldn't normally say in public, which is still wrong, but this guy is a mayor being interviewed by CNN. Could you be any more politically incorrect, stereotypical, and unprofessional? On top of that, the whole situation that he was touching on made this an even worse interview to blurting out such an idiotic statement. They want what every other human wants, a good clean home where they can make money, support their families, and live a happy, healthy life. Being the land of opportunity, it would be hypocrytical to deny any human the right to prosper in our country just because they were not born here. I do believe that if you want to live in this counrty and work in this country, you should first make sure you are just as much of a citizen as everyone else.
Breezing past the obvious racist remarks (remember in class, when Professor Richards said how people are often criticized and called names based on the foods that they eat? What is it with food-based racist quips?), the real issue here is the mayor’s neglect of not only the people within his care, but also neglect of the fact that this is even an issue! I can’t comprehend the amount of disregard for the well-being of the Latinos in East Haven, an area this man is supposed to be in charge of. Perhaps it was just the spin the writer or editors put on the article, but every comment the man gave just reeked of dismissal. Any allegations toward the police force of his city should not be thought of in the manner that he spoke of. I understand saying that the officers are innocent until proven guilty, but Maturo’s comment that he “stands behind the East Haven Police Department” just shows how inconsiderate he’s being. One in authority does not just simply “stand behind” something that may have been screwed up for a long while. Hearing these accusations, he should have shown more interest in getting to the bottom of the story and learning what really went on.
The accusations themselves were astonishing to me. To think that police—meant to serve and protect—might be a driving force behind the racism in that particular area really makes an impression. As the Latinos in the community seemed to be in legal standing, there would be no reason to be so violent toward them. As Sam pointed out in his recap, the police must have forgotten why the immigrants came to our country: to build better lives for themselves. Coming here and getting attacked by those of authority was most definitely not on their to-do list. Maturo must also realize this. Why he is playing down the mistreatment and neglect of the issue of mistreatment of the Latinos in his community is a mystery to me.
His actual apology wasn’t very reassuring, either. It was just a rambling, a scrambled account. Perhaps the man really was just stressed at the time of the remark, but he seemed much stressed during his apology, too. That suggested a false front, something the man had to actually think about and not just say from the heart. His initial remark quite possibly occurred from his guard being down and it just sort of fell out of his mouth, per se. But his apology should have been the same—sincere and unthinking, meaning every word. His flustered gibberish didn’t put any faith back in him. Though, in the article, it said that some of the Latinos accepted his apology, they still didn’t trust him. I understand this completely. His disregard for the people really must change.
The history of the United States is covered with wide spread racism, which is extremely ironic to me considering the descendants of the majority of our population can be traced back to another country. Up until the civil rights movement, in most cases, people made little attempt to hide their feelings towards other cultures living in the United States. But now over 50 years after the civil rights movement, racism still exists in the closets. I personally believe that this makes it even more dangerous. You use to be able to simply ask somebody their feelings towards other races and they would just openly tell you the truth, but now it is hidden. This ultimately makes it more difficult to weed out those people who are racist from public service.
The mayor’s comment about eating “tacos” was clearly insensitive towards the Latino community and does not help East Havens current situation. I don’t understand how an elected official could say something like that about his own constituents. The comment mirrors the accusations of harassment and abuse being charged toward some of the policemen and certainly won’t help them in the eyes of the public. It seems that the towns’ public servants are openly stereotyping the Latino community.
The accusations on the policemen lead you to believe that they must be guilty of some crime, but the Mayor made no real acknowledgement toward the potential victims in this case. I believe he did this because if the mayor threw the policemen under the bus, then it could potentially hurt the trust that the citizens of East Haven have in the police force. I find it hard to believe that they alleged activity of the accused police department could’ve gone overlooked and unaddressed for years until the point that they FBI would have to get involved. It was clear that changes must be made to their system to prevent this behavior in the future and the town has already begun to implement them. If this charges stick I would expect East Haven to see some big changes.
As Sam stated, it’s really hard for me to pass judgement on this mayor as to his response without being aware of the entire context of the situation. However, in reading the article it does seem as if the mayor does not seem to care much about the Latino population in his area. But in general, I’m really shocked and disappointed with all of the negative interactions I hear about between “Americans” and illegal immigrants from Spanish speaking countries. It’s hard for me to understand how some people can think of other people as “sub-human creatures” that are not deserving of respect, rights or even any sympathy. I mean I know from lecture as Sam has stated multiple times that slavery is more abundant now more than ever and that most situations of slavery involve people thinking of other people as some sort of “sub-human” but still it’s hard to comprehend. Despite the many differences between people of different skin colors, ideologies or even cultures, it is incredibly important to remember that in the end we are all fundamentally human. I try and treat everyone with respect, or at least give everyone a fair shake. I’m not saying that I don’t make mistakes (I still tend to judge people as most people do because that’s what I think we are kind of taught by society to do as we grow up), I’m saying that for me however there is no difference in the life value of the child of an illegal immigrant and that of the president.
I do not approve of the harsh and dehumanizing language that is often used towards illegal immigrants, but I guess that maybe this language serves as a way for people to feel better about their actions towards them. I mean, it’s easier to hate an “animal” or some “unearthly scum” (in my opinion) than the father of some little girl who is risking everything to provide her the kind of life that he couldn’t have. I think that it is kind of language is extremely similar to that which is used during war. In WWII, the German’s produced tons of propaganda to make the German citizens think of the Jews as sub-human creatures, apes even, that caused all of Germany’s problems. This was necessary to make people forget that the Jews were just people like themselves and instead accept the idea that they are nothing more than “filthy animals” (I do not believe in any of the portrayals of Jewish people that I am relaying). When you don’t think of your enemy as a person, it’s much easier to justify atrocious actions against them. I know that I’m not explaining this in the most elegant manner possible, but I hope that the points I’m trying to get across are getting across.
Whether or not the people who call illegal immigrants “scum” and “animals” actually think they are or not, I think it is clear that it is much easier to hate a concept or a caricature than actual people; mothers, fathers and children. I just hope that someday soon we get to a point where people will be more respectful and understanding of each other, but I fear that with the current climate in the United States (and even the world) this day may be far off.
It seems as though United States citizens, especially the white people, think that they are superior to people of other countries. It's amazing how stupid people ask. Mexican immigrants are coming to this not to be doctors and lawyers, but to do the jobs that United States citizens do not want to do. These immigrants are picking vegetables in the hot Alabama sun, cutting our lawns, cleaning our filth-ridden sewers. People are quick to think that all Mexicans living in the United States are illegal, and that there are way to many illegal immigrants living in the United States. Some people blame illegal immigrants for the rising unemployment rate, when in reality unemployed people would rather take their benefits rather than work a shitty job. I think the reason why people are quick to judge Mexicans living in the United States is based off two reasons. Our misconceptions are based off how we were raised and what we've heard on television. Racism in America has become a subgenre of comedy in the United States. People make racist jokes all the time, and even non-racist people will laugh at it because its funny. Television also takes advantage of racist humor. In Family Guy, there is a Mexican maid who is often stereotyped. In the cartoon series Speedy Gonzales, the characters are all mice from Mexico. The shows completely rips on Mexicans for being alcoholics and being fat and lazy. And as a result of this, this often warps people's minds. It starts with people who have no contact with Mexican immigrants who base their views on other races with based off T.V. And these people express their views to everyone, and some of their friends believe them. Then, they tell their friends and so on and so forth. Soon, a fair amount of people have bad views of Mexican immigrants just based off of what people said. My grandparents often say racist slurs. It bothers me to a fair amount how hateful people can be towards other people just for being different from them. To me, it seems ignorant to treat someone differently just because they have a different skin composure than me. But because they were raised in a neighborhood that had zero minorities in and in a time period before the civil rights movement, they can't help but to be racist towards non-white people. I hope I live in a world one day where racism is non-existent, but i think we, as a society, are still very far away from that.Even though our current president, Barack Obama, is half black, people still have problems looking at each other equally. I wouldn't be surprised if society stays racist forever.
What the Connecticut mayor said during the interview was obviously wrong and as he said later inflaming the already serious problem. Right away I thought that for him to say that really made me question how he could have been in this high of a position. Maybe he wasn't serious and just got a little wound up but to say that in an interview on the record shows me that he doesn't always think before he speaks. The taco comment was something I'd expect to see in a Saturday Night Live skit not an actual interview with a political figure. Now on the topic of why Americans citizens seem to be so rude to illegal immigrants I really think it stems from whether you call it jealousy or annoyance in the fact that they are getting away with not paying taxes and being here illegally. Another reason many citizens might be upset could be from hearing stories like the one about the firefighters in Oregon that was blogged about last week. I don't have a problem with people coming to America looking for a better life but when they cause captains and other firefighters who have been there longer, to be fired that is pretty unfair. Especially when there are several things that can be done to put one bilingual person on a team so that it doesn't cause people to be fired for non-work related reasons. I believe that if you take those previous reasons/situations out there won't be too many problems with the immigrants. If people are still being racist against them then I'm not quite sure what they could be upset about, because if a legal immigrant comes into America and works hard to better their lives I can't see a problem with that. Especially when a lot of jobs they fill in America are ones that most Americans do not want. Some people believe they are too good for those jobs too. In that case there is even less of a reason to be angry with immigrants. Think about what Stephen Colbert joked about in his video from an old blog, why can’t there be soil waist high so it doesn’t hurt my back to pick berries. To me it seems like Americans are “too good” for this tough manual labor or too weak, so why do we continue to pick on the people that do in fact do it, and for not that much money in the first place. Sure I’m sure that some Americans would do it given the choice but that doesn’t mean that we should make fun or call immigrants who are mostly known for doing that type of manual labor animals or other names.
Upon hearing the East Haven’s mayor’s comments I was nothing short of flabbergasted. The fact that people in such a high position of power can be so ignorant is not only upsetting but also disappointing. I firmly believe that mayor’s term should be terminated immediately. With the Hispanic community in the United States constantly growing, plenty of legal citizens could be looking to relocate to that city and contribute to the economy in a positive way but instead this mayor may well have alienated them. Whether ignorant racists like it or not, the Latino community (legally that is) contributes extremely positive to our economy and society. Hence if the East Haven officials want to avoid this public relations nightmare, he should definitely be expelled from office.
Now granted we have already established the ignorance of the mayor’s comments, the far greater issue this article undertones is the treatment of illegal immigrants in this country. My personal stance is that illegal immigration is illegal for a reason and if you come to this country illegally you should not be able to stay. Period. However what needs to change is the circumstances in which we regulate this. The article states that there were several incidents of police brutality and racial profiling. Granted the city (and for arguments sake, the entire country) may be frustrated with this problem, the culture needs to change in which we regulate it. Perhaps there should be harsher penalties for the legal citizens who hire these people and harbor them within their companies. Not only would this discourage the hiring of illegal immigrants but also motivate citizens to take a more prominent role in preventing illegal immigration. I feel like this would be exponentially more effective then the current systems of uncoordinated raids of storefronts and residential areas and would quell the growing problem of brutality and violence (not only against illegals but mistaken illegals who are in fact US citizens. As Professor Richards states in his commentary on this article, while they might be illegal, they certainly should not be classified as scum or animals because no innocent human should have to bare those horrific stereotypes and hurtful generalizations. The bottomline is that the culture of our country needs to change in regards to this issue and it starts with East Haven cleaning house with this ignorant, racist of a mayor because in order for change to occur, it starts with those in positions of power. The point is that elected officials, such as mayors have a tremendous influence on the thoughts and ideas of the people in the community. The last thing anyplace in this country needs is for people to follow the example of this moron.
This story entirely reflects the discriminatory nature of the people in power. They view themselves as superior because they hold an esteemed position in society. But their success is more a product of sociological factors than their earned merit. Because they’re lucky enough to have opportunities in their life allowing them to achieve powerful positions in society, they feel that others are inferior, and attribute their failure with visible factors such as race, ethnicity, culture, and SES. It’s a skewed perspective that coincides with my previous post about the elitist perception of power and how that reflects on minorities. Mayor Maturo is a culprit of our elitist society. His off comment statement about supporting the Latino community in East Haven by purchasing tacos clearly shows the perspective of powerful whites. Because all they’ve known, for the most part, has been success, they create explanations for their failures. IT’s quite ridiculous how racially inconsiderate many people in this country and around the world for that matter are. Because of language barriers and SES differences we seclude ourselves to our groups and develop hatred for others due to their differences. I think in a lot of ways that speaks to human nature. Maybe we just won’t ever be able to get along. We’ve fabricated so many stereotypes for different races and ethnicities it’s quite embarrassing. Like the taco comment. I wonder how many whites make living selling tacos. I’m sure whites profit more from the taco industry than Latinos due. And why should they? I mean after all the American way is to take what isn’t yours and spin it as your own. Pizza for example, stolen from the Italians. Whenever a mew group comes to the US we terrorize them, diminish their worth and take their culture away from them and try and frame it as American consumerism. More like bullshit.
I’m also not sure if Maturo’s apology was genuine. Did he really mean it, or was he just doing damage control? For a city with a reputation of police brutality and mistreatment against the Latino community his words definitely fall short. There’s also not a single Latino on the police force. Ironic or just commonplace? There’s connections here, and it’s a common theme around the country. Immigrants are attacked for being different from the major power holders. All they want to do is create a better life for themselves, but are portrayed as taking away from other Americans, which is a ridiculous statement seeing how basically everyone in the US is an immigrant of some sort. My mother is an immigrant from France. But because she was white she never had an issue being accepted into society. I guess her SES had something to do with it too. In this day and age immigration discrimination is not about country of origin like in the early 1900’s, but about race.
After reading this article, I was pretty disturbed, yet not surprised, by the harsh words and treatment of the Latino community in the East Haven community. Many American politicians and ordinary citizens seem to have a lack of respect and hope for any type of minority community, especially if they are labeled under a Hispanic or Latino background. The mayor, Joseph Maturo, seems to fit this stereotype of the person who is not giving immigrants or people in general from these backgrounds a chance to make it in America. His comment about the tacos was very appauling and I was shocked that as an established political figure in a community, he could be so careless with his comments and accusations. The taco comment was actually completely ridiculous on his part and just proved that he is very ignorant of any type of cultural backgrounds and affiliations. Last time I checked, tacos were a Mexican food and just because someone is Hispanic or Latino does not mean they are Mexican, and it certainly does not mean that they like tacos.
In addition to the incompetent taco comment, I also think the mayor is not taking any of the accusations about the police officers in his community seriously. The article says he called the arrests “unfortunate.” Unfortunate does not sound very sincere to me and it just seems like he thinks that police officers racially profiling, harassing, and illegally arresting individuals simply because they are Latino, is an acceptable practice to Mayor Maturo. Maturo is not taking anything seriously because he also thinks that allegations like the ones against the East Haven police officers are outrageous and impossible. It just proves that he is not willing to, number one, accept that people are capable of committing horrible acts in his communities (well people who are not Latino), and two, he is not willing to accept the fact that he is East Havens worst culprit. The police force which he ultimately commands and/or controls is modeling after him and his racist slurs and actions, thus giving them that much more freedom to act like animals and unfairly treat individuals in the community just because they are the minority.
This situation is a prime example of a situation where power is undoubtedly being abused. I could not even believe that Maturo tried to compare his Italian heritage and comments he has encountered to the foul ones that came out of his mouth. This guy is great at making himself look like a complete idiot because by trying to find a commonality between himself experiencing comments and the ones he made about the Latino community, he just made himself that much more of a hypocrite. I agree with the statement in the article that Maturo cannot be trusted, and quite honestly, I do not think that having people as ignorant and uncouth as Maturo in positions of power is the best idea. This country needs to accept that people are coming here to improve their lifestyles and not everyone is going to look, act, or speak in the same way. America was built on a foundation of immigration and at one time, we were all minorities, so I do not think that anyone has the right to treat groups like the Latinos and Hispanics so unjustly, especially the Mayor of the community.
Wow, after reading “Connecticut mayor apologizes for taco comment,” I was truly flabbergasted. How could a man be so repugnant and crude when discussing other humans? Who gave this man any reason to believe that he is more important, or more worthy, than a Latin person? Even after his apology, "Unfortunately, I let the stress of the situation get the best of me and inflamed what is already a serious and unfortunate situation,” I find no right in his wrongs. He should be taken down from his leadership position, because a person so small minded is not worthy of being in a position of power.
This mayor most certainly owes a huge apology to the community, and needs to reprioritize his thoughts. It’s scary that one person, who technically is in control, is so racist. The Latino population is often targeted by police, for committing crimes they did not do. They are often victims of unfair employment, either not hired because of their race, or hired and paid the very bare minimum wages. I think that this mayor needs to realize that these people need help, and they need someone who is good, and fair. Latin people need a savior who is going to see them not for color, but for their goodness, and for their drive of their minds.
Many Latin people in America are legal, and even if not, they came here because they desired to do well. These people desired to make a difference, to help their families, to improve their lives. If they have committed no crime, then they deserve utmost respect. After all, we are all just people in the end, right? We can’t dictate when we’re born, and we can never stop death, so we’re all equal in the world. During extreme circumstances, sometimes it is necessary for people to act as they do, despite if it’s within the law or not. Our World has created a stigma for everyone to be perfect, so when those pressures overtake a person, they will do anything to meet those standards. Frankly, the world is NOT a fair place for Latin people.
With the unfairness in this world, comes unrest. People resort to whatever is necessary to make some aspects of the world fair for their family despite the repercussions that may come to them. Why not allow immigrants the equal right to life, freedom and the pursuit of happiness? These people just want to work, and they do labor that legal Americans will refuse to do, so they are technically stimulating the economy. People need to be more open minded, and we need to take of the glasses of racism provided by society. Our world needs to join hands, not raise their guns.
Listening and looking at the response to his comments from those around the mayor, it was very clear that the remarks made about the Latino community there was outrageously insensitive. He clearly did not believe that this was going to be taken as seriously as it was/should’ve been, but even in a joking manner, as a MAYOR of a city, this is ill-fitting regardless of the amount of Latinos in the population.
Even though the town of East haven has a populations of Hispanics and Latinos under 4%, there was a sense in the phrase that the remark would never really reach down all the way to the Latinos, or simply that there wouldn’t be any disagreement in what was said. I feel that because of the overwhelming population of White Americans in Connecticut, there was the idea that alienating the Latino Community was not a bad idea, kind of like an inside joke that everyone would get a chuckle out of.
Unfortunately, I feel that Latinos still get treated like this for a number of reasons. For one, there is not much targeting towards Latinos and Hispanics when it comes to campaigning and gathering votes for elections. They do not feel that they have as much influential presence in the voting booth because most of them are known to not vote since they are predominantly low income workers or inner-city residents who are not among the highest in voting attendance. The Latino-Hispanic interest groups just aren’t as interesting as investment banks are in the game of politics. Unfortunately for some of these really needy sectors, their requests aren’t heard because they have nothing to scratch the government’s backs back with.
Another reason that I feel why Latinos and Hispanics do not get the same respect of their rights as other racial groups like African-americans or Asian Americans is because there was no real fight for their rights. After the Japanese Internment in the 1940’s, the avocation of human rights had started to bring awareness of this country’s government instilled racism. The African American civil rights movement was our revolt against the racial injustice based deep in our country’s legislature and stand against the injustice happening in the country at the time. These struggles against the majority driven government has never really experienced a mostly Latino/Hispanic revolt yet. This to me is why I believe that this will be the true turning point for Latino-Hispanic human rights in America and clearly define what this country stands for: Human rights, of the almighty dollar. The population of undocumented immigrants in the united states was almost 10 million. Just because they cannot be heard does not mean they cannot be seen. Respect their rights.
It is disgraceful that a mayor would say such a hurtful thing. What was he thinking when he said that? Clearly he was disregarding the Latino community when the question arose and he decided to not only ignore it, but make a extremely rude comment. After reading this article, I showed it to my roommate who was born and raised in Conneticuit. She was extremely ashamed with her state.
Does his apology repair his statement? I don't think so. I still want to know what he is going to do for the Latino community in his state. The Latino community needs to be respected and they need to be treated with the same rights as every other community.
Would it have made larger news if a comment like this was made by a mayor in Florida or California? Just because the Latino community is so small in Conneticuit, does not mean it is okay by any means.
I think this mayor is an absolute jackass. How the hell are you trying to tell me that you didn’t mean that comment in a derogatory, ignorant way? While I don’t doubt the fact that he regrets saying it, because after all, anyone will regret doing something that makes them look racist in the public eye, it will take much more than a simple apology to regain the trust and support of the Latino and Hispanic communities. Clearly he is a racist individual who is not only ignorant, but does not fully comprehend the effect that immigrants and Hispanics in general have on our society. I chose to do this because after my blog response last week, this is a good follow up.
People today really don’t understand the difference in work ethic that Latino and Hispanic workers have from other workers. They continue on almost not affected by the physically demanding tasks that they complete day in and day out. They take pay cuts for this challenging work and do not complain about it. People criticize them for stealing American jobs, even though the only reason those jobs are vacant is because Americans refuse to work them. And now apparently, on top of that, they have to deal with police brutality? This simply just isn’t right. The one woman in the video said that she had been felt up by police for no reason other than being Hispanic; that’s ridiculous. I am glad to see that cops have been arrested for racial profiling because that is one of the underlying problems of our criminal justice system. Police officers, in my opinion, often take advantage of the fact that people don’t know their rights and what they are required to do and not to do upon being addressed by an officer of the law. Every weekend kid’s in State College are tricked into incriminating themselves simply because they don’t know what their rights are. When I think of someone who may be an immigrant, or someone who does not comprehend the English language incredibly well, I can only imagine that the experiences they have with the police are that much of a worse ordeal. That’s not even taking the whole issue of racial profiling into account either. When you add a biased officer of the law who may be holding an old grudge against members of the Hispanic or Latino communities, the results could be devastating, as they appear to be now.
Overall, I think that this mayor’s seat in office should be called into question. Regardless of who the mayor is however, they should be working on cleaning up the racial profiling being committed seemingly daily by their police force.
I literally just opened the article Sam posted. After reading the first sentence, "…he would help Latinos in his town by eating tacos.." I let out a chuckle and shook my head. I can understand (and somewhat appreciate) the dark humor of a comment like this, but I think it's just plain silly and simply insulting for a politician to say something like this, and be taken seriously. My first thoughts are to say that "Hey, he's from Conn. are there any Mexicans even there?", but I realize I know nothing about the demographics of that state (or really of any state). However, I think I can come to the conclusion (or perhaps assumption) that this man, more likely than not, grew up in a white-dominated area (not that there's anything wrong with that), and he said a joke that he often made when he was younger, and chances are, most of his friends would laugh at. Like I stated earlier, I'll admit I laughed when I read the line originally, but this goes beyond being a simple joke. Reading further into the article, it appears to me that both this man and his city are dominated by racism. Comments like this are simply a reflection of what the culture of that town has become (or was?). The police sweeps of Latino bars is beyond unnecessary. I could understand if reports were made, or if they had a warrant, but anything along the lines of what was described in this article are lines for police brutality. Sure, an "apology" was made, but by the looks of what the article says, there is no corresponding action to that apology. In fact, he seems to try and make excuses towards the end of it. Still, there's always the other side to it. The author of this article heavily favors the Lainto perspective on the issue, and I feel that this leaves the article a bit one-sided. I would like to know a bit more about the other side of the issue. The description of the beating that took place in the parking lot does sound horrific, but that's easy to do when there is no defense from the other end. I still support the Latinos and the end of racism in that area (and in general) but I think the inclusion of the other side would make the article appear a bit more…legitimate (for lack of a better word). Still, I'm glad to see that people are taking reform into their own hands. It shows that the politicians don't always reflect what the people truly feel (I get this feeling this is become more and more the case, but that's besides the point). I just hope things continue to turn around, and people look to stories such as this in order to help fight racism.
Being of a Latino persuasion, this video unsurprisingly caught my eye. And while I was expecting ignorance on the overt level as displayed in the post in which American citizens protested the an Islamic meeting held by their fellow Americans, what I found was something quite different. To me, the comment made by the mayor seemed not as though he was deliberately insulting Latin@s, but rather that his comment was supposed to come across as light hearted and humorous even. Regardless, the comment itself was indeed racist and insulting, and any form of racism is something that we as human beings must seek to end. But there are many forms of racism aside from the blowhard red blooded “Nativist” sentiments that so often catch our ears, and the crassness of the comment coupled with the nonchalant manner of delivery brings up one of the forms of racism that many, if not all of us, are guilty of at one point or another when dealing with brethren who may seem different from us.
This kind of “unintentional racism” (Yamato) as described in an article by Gloria Yamato, is the particular type used by the mayor in this post. And while he clearly was unintentional, the implications behind this situation, and the look into the future this gives the Latin@ community in Connecticut are ominous. Considering this, is it not within the realm of possibility that such racism may manifest itself in other ways unintentionally, with results that have far greater implications for minorities within these United States? Policy being affected by racism, whether overt or unintentional is certainly nothing new in the U.S. Steven E. Barkan noted in his text: Criminology, that “racial prejudice” has affected the way many whites in America view the appropriateness of the death penalty, as well as other forms of justice (Barkan). The recent laws passed in Arizona too are representative of the effects of such subliminal racism.
I think so many politicians today really don't realize what comes out of their mouths as they say it. They then realize after the media publicizes their ignorance and they try to change things but by that point its too late. So many people are angered and upset about the things these politicians say but sometimes I like it. It humors me and it lets you know how they really think. Obviously I don't agree with what they say or think it's right at all, but I really like to hear what they have to say when they are being honest and not thinking about votes they need to get. On another note, it really annoys me when public figures mess up and they say something like this guy did that was completely insensitive and then they try to turn it around into something that it obviously is not just to clean it up and save face. Instead of this guy just owning up to what he said and maybe trying to apologize for it and actually trying to do something for the Latino community in his city, he tried to spin the words he said so he could save face. I was watching some coverage on the statement Rick Santorum made about him wanting to help black people get jobs instead of giving them handouts and again I was just kind of happy that he did say it so people can really see how he actually feels. But then of course, when asked about what or why he said he quickly tried to change it up. He said if you watch the video you can see that he actually didn't say black but he started to say a word and in the midst of saying it, he tried to change it but it sounded like he said black when he actually didn't. It was quite obvious that he said black people but he couldn't just own up to it and apologize. Quite honestly, I didn't even think the taco thing was meant in a harmful way. The media twisted it a little but on the same token, if Maturo would have just owned up to it it would have been a lot better.
I was amazed yet not so shocked after reading this article. Racism is everywhere to this day, and as mentioned in the article, this is a clear reminder of how much further progress the world needs to make to be racism-free. I feel for those of the Latino community living in East Harlem. Ten percent, according to the census, is a decent amount, definitely large enough for the mayor to understand he probably shouldn’t throw out racist comments about the Latino population, let alone leave them unmentioned in condolences for the police scandal. The fact that he only included the police and their families in his sympathy makes me sick. Police are there to protect and serve, not to single out and harass. The policemen win no sympathy from me. Maybe their family because maybe they do not share the same beliefs, but the bottom line is the Latinos involved deserve way better treatment. The mayor should resign and move far, far away. Along with the racist, cruel police involved. I hope the rest of the town sees that this is wrong and maybe does something to help. I would be very ashamed of my town if something like this happened. Although, I am not ignorant enough to believe things like this are not happening everywhere, every day, and just going unnoticed or unreported. In these situations, we can all learn a lesson. Clearly this is a new generation where people have become more accepting and less judgmental. Everyone needs to open their eyes and realize we share the air we breathe and the ground we walk on with many other people of different races. The idea that you are better than someone else because of your color or inheritance is absurd. Hopefully those who have such a big head have a change of mind and heart. It is necessary if the world can move on and become a more peaceful place. After all, like Sam said in class, whites will soon be the minority. If the policemen eventually have grandchildren, it makes me wonder how they would feel if they were picked on or bullied for being white. Hopefully by then everyone is much more open minded that this won’t happen, but who knows? I have never been hurt by racist remarks, or from what I am aware of, been openly discriminated against. But to imagine that happening and from someone like a mayor of my town or a policeman, it would feel terrible, frustrating, and unfair. I hope those of the Latino community living in the town as well as involved in the scandal have a better road ahead of them. No one deserves that treatment, especially in their own town and home or place of work. I hope this scandal has at least put an end to it, if not that the end is in sight.
I feel like this article highlights something that happens everyday. Walking around campus, where it is predominately white, I hear insensitive racial slurs all the time. These kind of remarks are made by everyone- girls, boys, professors, visitors… they probably do not even know that they are saying something hurtful half of the time. The way we are raised makes it seem as though it is okay to make these comments, as long as it is in the company of close friends, family, etc. If I’m in public, I should not say anything racially insensitive. But, as soon as I get behind closed doors, it is more than okay to make an assumption, some racial slur, use a derogatory term, etc. I think the problem here is not that someone said this when he is in the public eye- though I do think this is a huge issue- but the fact that he can probably talk like that in the company of his family or friends without being told that it is wrong, mean, insensitive, etc. I was raised in a family of whites, where white is all my grandparents know, and that blacks were only seen on TV on the Cosby Show or in athletic events. Racial slurs were used every day, and I never knew that it was wrong. I especially see this now in my hometown, where a large number of Hispanic families have moved into in the past few years. It saddens me how insensitive a lot of people are to these new people, and how they people treat them like they aren’t actually citizens. What is worse is that most of these new people in my neighborhood are American citizens, moving to the suburbs to make a better life for their families instead of living in Philadelphia or New York. They’re business owners and entrepreneurs, they make incomes that classify them as middle class, and their kids have iphones. They are more than normal citizens, but yet they are treated differently because they look different or like to speak Spanish when they are with each other. I don’t really know; I think it is a bit insensitive. I also think that people should stop making slurs about people they don’t really know what nationality they are. I find it insulting when you call a Dominican black, or when people call Haitians Mexicans instead. It’s just really odd what people do, and I think we should all make efforts to be a little more considerate of the feelings of others. I know that I would be insulted if someone called me Asian, even though I am Ukrainian. Being open and considerate would be the kind thing to do.
Many Americans like to think that racism no longer exists, however this is obviously not the case. Most people would also like to think that people in a political leadership position would be especially not racist, however this is not the case either. I think that people could learn a lot about our society and how it really is by being exposed to articles such as this one. This article shows the sad truth about our society, even our leaders. It is interesting how people could take such offense to a comment that isn’t really even negative. This man’s comment is just stereotyping the fact that tacos are associated with Hispanics. This, in reality, shouldn’t be harmful because Hispanics know that they are associated with tacos. This is no different than Americans being associated with burgers, and other American foods. None the less, this was a rude comment for a person in a professional position to say, and really, anyone. (part 1)
I think many nonwhite people who live in America think that us white Americans are out to get them when it comes to racism, they look for opportunities to point fingers at us for racism every chance they get. I think this is because they come from a place where they are the majority and they are probably just expecting that since they are different they will be looked at differently, and in some cases, yes, they will be looked at differently, maybe even less adequately. I think these immigrants are expecting this, and therefore they notice it a lot more than I think it’s meant for. I do understand that not all Hispanics are guilty of illegal immigration, but when you look at the statistics, there are a lot residing in the United States right now. I think this makes white Americans think that it’s a highly likelihood that when seeing a Hispanic person on the street they could be an illegal immigrant. In which case, whites have a hard time accepting that person because to us, it’s wrong, hence, the term illegal. Getting back to the Connecticut mayor, what he did was wrong and he knew it. (part 2)
The mayor is probably sorry for the discomfort he caused to people he was targeting but he probably means what he said. Clearly, the man said what he was thinking, which is the sad truth. I think it’s obvious that many white Americans have thoughts that consume our minds all day about different races that we may have stereotypical views about, and I can definitely relate to this. I feel like these thoughts are just the way we are raised and we cannot help but to have certain opinions. This is not something we choose to think/believe, this is something we do believe. In the end, the mayor was wrong in not controlling what he was thinking, like a typical professional would have done. (part 3)
Since I live in CT and I am latino I find this comment appalling. Even though I do not live in that part of Connecticut, since hes talking about the latino community, I feel like he is addressing every Latino that lives there. For a public figure/ a politician to say he'd eat tacos to help the latino community made me shake my head in disbeleif. I don't care how many interviews he had that day, being a politician he knows he needs to think before he speaks which is something he clearly did not do.
I didnt even know there was so much negativity towards latinos in that part of town. I do not understand why he would defend the cops who harrassed and abused Innocent residents of his town. Not once in the interview did he reflect upon the latino victims and their families, instead he feels bad for the cops and theirs. Im sorry if this sounds rude but hes a fucking dick, he clearly has no sympathy for latinos and would rather stand behind the police force who has been known to do the same things to the rest of the latino community.
I'm sure he regrets what he said, but he obviously beleives the worlds that came out of his mouth. No one could say such a harsh comment if they didnt mean it. The only reason he regrets saying it is because it could hurt his career, which i hope he does. They should make this man resign. I am not sure how many latinos live in that part of CT but Im almost 100% positive that he will not be getting votes from the latino community ever again. I dont understand how this man received such a position being so narrow minded.
I beleive governor Dan Malloy's statement to what the mayor said was nicely put. "He owes an apology to the community, and more importantly, he needs to show what he's going to do to repair the damage he's done," Just by appologizing to the latino community isnt going to help. they will still be mad at him, and certainly will not forget this comment. He needs to actually do something to decrease the tension the community has with latinos and more importantly, the tension between the police force and them. The police force clearly will be even angrier now that 4 members of their force was arrested from the FBI because of latinos. It will only make them dislike latinos more. The mayor has to realize this and must consider firing people on that police force because that would mean saving many latinos lives. If he doesnt do anything though, i beleive he should be forced to resign.