Posted on 03/22/2008 12:08:09 PM PDT by SwinneySwitch
AUSTIN - A proposed detention facility for suspected illegal immigrants was labeled a "holding pen for wetbacks" on a public meeting agenda written by a rural city council member.Charles Laws, 75, apologized Thursday for using the derogatory term but defied calls from state lawmakers and officials in nearby Austin for him to resign as Mustang Ridge's mayor pro tem and as general manager of a local water supply company.
"If I hadn't been in such a hurry I would have said ‘illegals' or something like that, but that's a term that I grew up with out here and everybody said it," Laws told Austin television station KVUE.
In an another interview Thursday with News 8 Austin, Laws said he shouldn't have used the word before adding, "Illegals, I want them to send back as soon as possible."
The slur was posted on a board meeting agenda Wednesday for the Creedmoor-Maha Water Supply Corp., which has contracts with the city of Austin and supplies water to nearby communities. Among the items was discussion over providing water to the proposed detention facility.
Mustang Ridge is a town of about 900 people, located about 20 miles south of Austin. The area is home to several heavily Hispanic neighborhoods, the Austin American-Statesman reported.
"I think it's my duty, not only as a state representative but a Mexican American, to do whatever I can to get this man to resign," state Rep. Eddie Rodriguez said at a news conference with other public leaders.
Mike Martinez, an Austin city council member, said "having someone become defensive about their use of this language, holding a public office is unacceptable in 2008."
Laws said he had no plans to step down from his positions.
"I'm sorry if I offended anybody. I didn't mean anything by it," Laws told KVUE. "But, no, I'm not resigning. I don't do what Austin tells me to do."
“In fact, the cornerstone of the anti-immigration movement is to sub-humanize the immigrants(legal and illegal).”
You may have meant “de-humanize”, Ben. “Subhuman” is either an adjective or a noun and I don’t think “sub-humanize” is a word.
Most here would say—and have said, over-and-over, that legal aliens are welcome. But most illegal aliens from Mexico arrive as grade school dropouts, unable to speak or write English, not vaccinated, no money—pretty much worthless, except in their value as slaves to employers.
Untermenschen? No, in fact, they are a lot like my labrador retriever, although he’s had all his shots. Illegals aren’t exactly `worthless’ to employers, but they have a negative worth for taxpayers since we all pitch in for their medical care, et cetera. Just sayin’. . .
East of El Paso you can walk across at various times of the year because so much water is being used for irrigation the riverbed is bone dry. Most of the time they just walk across and the water is ankle to knee deep. Sometimes they walk across the footbridge that goes across the river that is on top of the flood and irrigation control dams.
So, if you want to know what you would call someone that crosses without a boat, try “ordinary.” Heck, sometimes you could call them “the driver.”
Only whitey honkeys can be racist since we are the only ethnic group in the universe that has “power”.
Here’s something from dennisw’s thread post: Lou Dobbs dissecting a hysterical La Raza shill, a Ms. Murguia.
She gets the word “demonization” in as well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZhHAxFnvvgQ
dennisw=SwinneySwitch
I'm seeing things happen lately...
The Second Amendment challenge in the Supreme Court...
That sign on the cheesesteak restaurant in Philadelphia being ruled legal and allowed to stay...
It's probably much too early to wonder, but...
Are we finally going to start standing up and fighting for for our rights?
The same folks who are asking this man to resign are the ones standing by Barack Obama, who is standing by Rev Wright. So they dont have any standing to call on anyone to resign over insensitive remarks when they are willing to stand with the man who stands with “G-d D888 America” Wright.
Is “wetbacks” worse than “whities” or “gringos”??
A: maybe. this is a ‘whose ox is gored’ comment. Those who want to erase the concept of illegal immigrants as a group want to elminate all the words for it, especially ugly colloquialisms. OTOH, IMHO, it’s not much worse than calling all whites “anglos”, a term that at least to me is ‘offensive’ and wrong.
I live in Austin and every single one of our city council members do not speak for me. They are politicially correct left-liberal airheads.
BTW, they are asking a man from *another town* to resign. This guy is not from Austin, and I suspect nobody would have known about the comment if a stink wanst raised on it. There has been a flood of stories about ‘insensitive’ comments. It looks like a pruging of the good-ol-boys. A fire chief who made ‘sexist’ comments, some police officers, etc. Funny how this all comes up right when the Rev Wright affair comes out. Almost as if its a more-than-coincidence moment.
I hereby call on Pelosi, Murtha, Reid and Schumer to resign, just because they are anti-American and anit-freedom jerks. Will they?
When I lived in Santa Fe they were called “Beaners” or Pachuco’s. (that was a long time ago in the un PC world of college)
There is a Hard Rain Gonna Fall
I need you to answer a question. In reply #24 there is a link to article in which it is mentioned that FAIR was designated as a hate group. Since Bilbray was FAIR's lobbyist, and Bilbray replaced Tancredo as the House Republican Immigration Caucus leader, does that mean the House Republican Immigration Caucus is a hate group?
Get with the times.
All Typical White PeopleTM are called "anglos".
True enough- we are no longer welcome to speak and I expect a law against white people speaking will be passed any day now. It also amazes me that the current thought is not only that all whites are racist, but only whites can be racist. It’s hard to keep all this straight, but I am trying.
Exactly, he needs to hold firm and refuse to resign. He needs to not even consider resigning unless and until all the racist minority leaders step down. Liberals can get away with making rude and “unacceptable” comments so everyone should get away with it. Wetback was a term used by everyone, including the U.S. Government for many years- when was it announced or put in writing that the term was no longer to be used? This PC crap needs to end. It has always been good manners to not say things that might offend people, but this leaping on someone for a slip of the tongue is getting old.
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