Gaffes on Hispanics From 2 Well Known Mouths [Bill O' Reilly Uses Word 'wetback' On Air]

NY Times ^ | February 10, 2003 | Dave Carr

[ewing]

On Thursday night the FOX News talkshow host Bill O'Reilly, used the word 'wetback' as he fumbled for words to describe smugglers who transport illegal aliens over the border.

Mr. O'Reilly returned a New York Times phone call to say, 'I was groping for a term to describe an industry that brings people in here. It was not meant to discourage people in any way.'

Rep. Silvestre Reyes, House Democrat of Texas, whom Mr. O'Reilly was interviewing when the word slipped out, said in a statement: 'Of course he didn't intend to say it. But the fact that 'wetback' is a part of his vocabulary and slipped out is a clear sign of where his views fall.'

A FOX News spokeswoman said on Friday, 'This network does not condone the use of any racial epithet, nor does Bill.

[ewing]

Here comes the TV apology full court press next I am sure..

[ewing]

PC alert!

[Catspaw]

disparage, not discourage

[Mamzelle]

"Wetback" not allowed, now? How about "mojado"?

[corkoman]

gosh. wetback is an oldie - surprised he used it.

Ive also noticed that if I hang around folks who curse a lot I start cursing too. I wonder who Bill hangs with?

[ewing]

Correct, my dyslexia typing kicking in there.

[Constitution Day]

I guess this means the following product will no longer be advertised on The Factor!
(words hurt, you know)

[corkoman]

lmao. Warped minds are to be exemplified!

[ewing]

I bet Bill was probably discussing the attitude of some of these guys who take busloads of these illegals into the states crammed into a vehicle that they have no concerns about common sarety for..(the legal drivers) considering their human cargo as 'wetbacks.'

[ewing]

Bill was probably in a heated discussion as well.

[Sally'sConcerns]

Actually he did use the wrong word for the smuggler since they're commonly known as coyotes.

I have lived the majority of my life in Texas and wetback was a term used for illegal immigrants from anywhere south of the Rio Grande river. The term originated because of the wet back illegal immigrants would get when crossing the Rio Grande.

[ATOMIC_PUNK]

wet·back    ( P )  Pronunciation Key  (wtbk)
n. Offensive Slang

Used as a disparaging term for a Mexican, especially a laborer who crosses the U.S. border illegally.

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[From the fact that the Rio Grande is a common entry point.]

[taxed2death]

"wetback".....if the shoe fits.......

[Amerigomag]

'This network does not condone the use of any racial epithet

Some grand ignorance in high places.

Mexicans are classified as caucasoid!

While the phrase may be culturally or geopolitically insensitive is not racist

[Palladin]

I cringed when I heard O'Reilly say that to Reyes! O'Reilly proved himself to be a Northern redneck with that remark. An Irish-Catholic bigot, looking down upon a proud and hardworking ethnic group, whose ancestors once owned half of the USA, only to have their real estate appropriated by the Manifest Destiny thugs.

O'Reilly's forebears were picking potatoes in Ireland while the Conquistador ancestors of those he maligns as "wetbacks" were exploring, colonizing, and Christianizing the Americas.

[Constitution Day]

I've had a warped mind for years, but the condition has only worsened through repeated exposure to FR! :)

[Sloth]

How is 'wetback' a racial epithet? Weird.

[South40]

Is O'Reilly an elected official? Of course not. But suppose he was. Would we ever hear the end of it?

Cruz Bustamante, the second highest ranking Democrat in California got a free ride for doing just that.

“It was a big day for the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists. Their annual awards dinner and scholarship fund-raiser in Emeryville, California, was also a celebration of Black History Month, and the lieutenant governor of California, Cruz Bustamante (D), was on hand to give the keynote speech.

The highest-ranking Latino in California politics has made black and brown coalitions one of his aims in governance. Bustamante's attendance at the dinner was a badge of honor, but his speech, which focused on the labor work of A. Philip Randolph, degenerated into a racial insult when Bustamante said "nigger" in the middle of rattling off the titles of organizations that had "Negro" in them."

Whole story

[ohioman]

I hope to hell you are being sarcastic. What is romantic about illegal Aliens? Would you feel better if I called them assholes.

[Vision]

I've talked to some Texas hunters who are suprised the term is offensive. It is not uncommon to see Mexicans who are wet, running across their south Texas hunting grounds while they wait for deer.