In my 1986 Cassell's Spanish English dictionary, the word raza is defined as n.f. ;race ;breed; quality...; de__; thoroughbred.
You are correct in labeling it an extreme organization.
Are the people who defend this extreme terrorist group just stupid, are they actively conspiring to cover up their true motives and anti-American activities?
I have no idea. You can count on their extremism being covered up for the near future (especially what with Gonzalez's affiliation). I think there are some dunderheads in charge of both parties that honestly think ALL American hispanics believe in these organizations and that all of us base our votes on immigration policy. That's probably because that's a big "la raza" issue, and they tend to be the loudest while the rest of us American hispanics are mainstreaming and getting involved in issues that really affect us (widget regulations and/or trade policy for those of us widget makers, etc.)