Posted on 02/06/2002 5:36:18 AM PST by traditionalist
We have been told for years by ?conservative? immigration enthusiasts that Hispanics are natural cultural conservatives who will-Real Soon Now-flock to the electoral aid of the Republican Party in its culture war with liberals. The current gubernatorial primary campaign in California is providing more evidence that this is w-r-o-n-g.
I have found that NEW Hispanic immigrants AND L.A./Orange County Hispanics ARE definitely liberal. They are the ones who rally, protest, complain, and want.
However, in Northern California Hispanics -- who are generally 3rd, 4th, 5th generation -- are far more conservative, put social issues like abortion at the forefront, are devout, and work hard. They are friends and neighbors and good people.
I will not jump on the anti-Hispanic bandwagon. I am staunchly opposed to illegal immigration -- yes, there is a major problem with immigration that MUST be solved -- and Bill Simon had the best response at the last debate when he talked about tougher border control.
But we need to realize that California is such a diverse and different state. We really should be six states. I sympathize with the major problems L.A. and Orange Counties have experience because of the very real immigration problem, a problem that must be fixed. At the same time, I commend the immigrants who have come here through legal channels and are contributing to the betterment of society and their individual families.
God bless.
A lot of the more recent ones are Democrats as are all the illegals. Hispanics represent not a monoculture as we Anglos so often perceive them, but a multiplicity of cultures. Mexicans are not the same as Puerto Ricans, and Colombians and Hondurans are also different. Although they have a common heritage and common langauge, there are dialectical and social distinctions among all of them, not readily apparent to Anglo-Americans.
But basically, most Hispanics, or the ones I met, have a value system based on a strong nuclear family, a strong sense of morality and honor, a powerful work ethnic, a head for business and a desire to achieve and are, accordingly, more in tune with Republican values than Democratic ones
In the long run, time will bear this out - with careful Republican grooming.
Until they're "organized" by the IAF, anyway.
Connecting People to Politics: The Role of Religious Institutions in the Texas IAF Network
Citing 3rd or 4th generation hispanics proves the rule in fact: these people were assimilated at a time when we were still relatively sane, conservative, and nationalistic. Today, what kind of culture are the new immigrants going to be "assimilated" into, assuming they are in fact assimilated? And can we really afford to wait another 3 or 4 generations to find out?
Modern immigration patterns are a kind of negative reinforcement loop: immigration empowers the forces of political correctness, counter-cultural forces, and the welfare state. The welfare state and the politically correct and counter-cultural types, in turn, lobby for more immigration and the de facto non-enforcement of our existing immigration laws.
Now, obviously, these people know something most of our average "in denial" GOP types don't know, or refuse to admit. The enemy knows what it is doing. It is no accident that our polical system only gives us a choice between the Evil Party and the Stupid Party. One hopes it is not too late for the Stupid Party to stop being stupid.
I agree with you. I think that it's important to separate ILLEGAL immigration from LEGAL immigration. I want good, moral people in our country who work, pay taxes, and love America. I don't want people who break the law at the beginning ... by crossing our borders illegally ... and end up in our schools, in our hospitals, and not loving our country.
I believe that American IS a melting pot, that we are ONE NATION UNDER GOD. We are NOT a bunch of separate cultures all living within the same boundary. Immigrants legally coming to our country who assimilate into America are welcome; those coming illegal into our country who want to retain their individual culture are not.
I believe that stronger border control will ultimately help stop the anti-Hispanic feelings because eventually, the only people here will be here legally, and they will love this country like we do. They will, ultimately, be Americans.
1) Alien invaders (or, in current political doublespeak - "undocumented immigrants")
2) Legal immigrants
3) Our immigration policy (or lack of one)
How are we supposed to assimilate immigrant kids when all the history books used in our public schools are laced with anti-American propaganda? How can we assimilate them when Hispanic community leaders openly speak of a Mexican reconquista of the Southwest? How can assimlation happen when LEGAL immigrants can live in large ghettos (East LA, Spanish Harlem, etc.) where they don't need to speak any English? What incentives do they have to assimilate when they can be allowed dual citizenship, or when they can get ballots (BALLOTS!) printed in Spanish?
If you think the melting pot is working, you're living in a dream world.
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