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The proposal has been made by U.S. Rep. Ruben Hinojosa, and it would give the organization that describes itself as “the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States – [working] to improve opportunities for Hispanic Americans” $5 million annually starting in 2008, with the funding to double the next year and then continue at that level “for each fiscal year thereafter.”

It's called the Hope Fund Act. The Act is below:

110th CONGRESS

1st Session

H. R. 1999

To authorize appropriations for assistance for the National Council of La Raza and the Raza Development Fund.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

April 23, 2007

Mr. HINOJOSA (for himself and Mr. RENZI) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services

A BILL

To authorize appropriations for assistance for the National Council of La Raza and the Raza Development Fund.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Hope Fund Act of 2007'.

SEC. 2. ASSISTANCE FOR NATIONAL COUNCIL OF LA RAZA AND RAZA DEVELOPMENT FUND.

(a) Use- The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall, to the extent amounts are made available pursuant to subsection (b), make a grant to the National Council of La Raza for the purpose of providing technical and financial assistance to local non-profit organizations to undertake community development and affordable housing projects and programs serving low- and moderate-income households, particularly through organizations located in neighborhoods with substantial populations of income-disadvantaged households of Hispanic origin. Assistance provided by the Secretary under this section may be used by the National Council of La Raza or the Raza Development Fund to--

(1) provide technical and financial assistance for site acquisition and development, construction financing, and short- and long-term financing for housing, community facilities, and economic development;

(2) leverage capital from private entities, including private financial institutions, insurance companies, and private philanthropic organizations;

(3) provide technical assistance, training, support, and advice to develop the management, financial, and administrative capabilities of housing development organizations serving low-income households, including Hispanic households; and

(4) conduct such other activities as may be determined by the Secretary and the National Council of La Raza .

(b) Authorization of Appropriations- There is authorized to be appropriated for grants under this section--

(1) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2008; and

(2) $10,000,000 for each fiscal year thereafter.

I’m no fan of the NCLR and disagree with many of it’s policies, but how exactly are they different than say the NAACP?

The author makes this statement;

“NCLR also has ties to Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan, or Chicano Student Movement of Aztlan (MEChA), a radical, nationalist group that Michelle Malkin describes as “a racist, anti-American separatist hate group, and actually shares much in common with such groups as Aryan Nations, and the White Aryan Resistance, another California-based organization.”

Note the use of the term Aztlan in the title of the group. Aztlan is “the legendary ancestral home of the Nahua peoples, one of the main cultural groups in Mesoamerica. ‘Azteca’ is the Nahuatl word for “people from Aztlan.” A MEChA document says “Aztlan was the legendary homeland of the Aztecas … It became synonymous with the vast territories of the Southwest, brutally stolen from a Mexican people marginalized and betrayed by the hostile custodians of the Manifest Destiny.”

Then he goes on for half the article about MeCHa...but he never tells us exactly how or where the NCLr has “ties” to MeCHA. I looked for them and all I could find was one small payment to help support a hispanic conference that MeCHA attended back in 2003. Sine then nothing. On their website the NCLE disavows anything having to do with the Aztlan movement, calling it ridiculous.

Now, that may not be true, it could be a smokescreen, but someone needs to do some research and show us some facts before they make an accusation like that an then disappear.

I don’t like that McCain is cozing up to these people, I disagree with much of what they promote, but I don’t see much difference between McCain reaching out to the NAACP or an Asian-American group than with the NCLR.

As far as race specific groups go, they are pretty mainstream (for lefties) and no where near as militant as others like MeCHA or La Raza Unida.