Posted on 08/23/2003 3:25:07 AM PDT by sarcasm
Los Angeles, U.S., August 22, 2003 (EFE).- Hispanics in the South L.A. municipality of Maywood are angry at what they say is a discriminatory campaign in which police are stopping Latinos and impounding the vehicles of those without a driver's license.
"We're not talking about agents of law and order but of official corruption, as though this were Latin America," an irate Felipe Aguirre of the Comite Pro Uno, an activist group organizing protests against the practice, told EFE.
In the last 12 months, more than 1,800 vehicles have been impounded from members of the Hispanic community in a town of some 40,000 inhabitants.
Although the underlying reason for the regulation is road safety, the Comite Pro Uno, supported by the nationwide League of United Latin American Citizens, or LULAC, allege the manner of enforcement in Maywood has made it a new form of racial discrimination.
"They're taking it out on the immigrant community," said Aguirre, after pointing out that the number of vehicles impounded in the community exceeded the total for the rest of the state of California.
The cars were impounded after their drivers could not produce a valid license. Latino activists say seizure of the vehicle is a drastic measure.
The vast majority of undocumented immigrants do not have a driver's license, because documentation is required in order to obtain one. The California state legislature is currently debating a bill that would allow many illegal immigrants to get a license.
Maywood is "99.9 percent Hispanic," as attested by the fact that even the council members are Latino, but the traffic cops are "all white," Aguirre said.
The activist alleges, however, that the problem is not only another instance of racial discrimination.
According to Aguirre, the massive impounding of vehicles in the Hispanic community is aimed at fattening the municipal coffers with easy money obtained from the most needy, whose cars are usually worth less than the fines that must be paid to get them back.
Such was the case with Yolanda and Paolo, a Mexican couple who in the last three months have had their Dodge Shadow - which cost $1,000 - impounded twice, and had to pay $656 each time to get it released.
"It's clear we need to resolve the problem of people driving without licenses in California, but to use traffic laws to seize the property of undocumented immigrants is not the solution," said LULAC president Hector Flores.
This situation should be debated in the state legislature, said Aguirre, who expressed hope that amid the turmoil California is presently experiencing the effort to recall Gov. Gray Davis, the embattled incumbent would see fit to authorize the state to issue licenses to illegal immigrants.
I say BRAVO to these cops.
I was almost killed by one a decade ago (in West L.A). He ran a red light with his $200 jalopy going about 50 mph and hit me on the driver's side of my car a couple feet from by door. ...spun my car around about 3 times before it came to a stop. Neither of us were too badly hurt, unbelievably. So he gets out of his car and says "no have licence....no have insurance." I replied "surprise, surprise." Cops got there pretty quickly, but for some reason didn't arrest the guy.
The first step these so called "undocumeted migrants" do is break the law by coming here. After that all laws are subject to voluntary compliance. See here in California, it's only those who have something to lose that must comply.
Case in point: A very good friend of mine is a painting contractor, licensed, insured, bonded, carries the required workman's commpensation insurance, and requires all of his hispanic workers to file and document appropriate I-99 forms, etc. His business has been in steady decline the past several years because hispanics who carry none of the required, licenses, insurances, or document their employees can underbid him on every job. He has been forced to deal in the highly competitive commercial painting sector, where being licensed, insured, etc. is required and audited. Unfortunately the bidding process is long and sometimes corrupt. Meanwhile his children have to compete for classroom space in schools supported by the property taxes he pays with the children of the so called "undocumented migrants."
Hector is right... we need to do something about it. We need the cops to drag the illegals straight to the border and toss them out, and lien sale their property, including any real estate they may have, to help cover the costs.
Hector..... you're next, troublemaker.... aiding and abetting these border-jumping sponges is a felony :-)
FReepmail me to be added or removed...!
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