Civil Rights Leaders Address Hate Crime Spike
New America Media, News Report//Photos, Cristina F. Pereda , Posted: Nov 25, 2008
Editor's Note: An alarming jump in hate crimes aimed at immigrants in the wake of the election of Barack Obama as U.S. president prompted civil rights leaders to send a message denouncing violence and calling for legal recourse. Contributor Cristina F. Pereda is an intern for New America Media.
Traducción al español
WASHINGTON D.C.—The brutal murder of Marcelo Lucero, a Long Island resident of Ecuadorian descent, brought seven national civil rights organizations together on Monday to denounce the recent wave of hate crimes against communities of color.
"In the wake of an election that sends a message to the world about freedom, it seems incongruous to raise the specter of hate in America," said Janet Murguia, president and CEO of the National Council of La Raza (NCLR) during the event in Washington, D.C. "Hate did not win the election, but it has certainly reared its head in local communities across the country."
Representatives from NCLR, the Asian American Justice Center (AAJC), the National Urban League, the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR), the NAACP and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) decried the recent spike in hate crimes and called for the next administration to address what Mark H. Morial of the National Urban League described as a "pressing issue."
"We are here to unify when sending a message: that whenever we see hate issues, we won't remain silent," Morial said.
The murder of Marcelo Lucero is the latest on a list of immigrant attacks that has grown by 40 percent in the last four years, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. At the event, civil rights leaders detailed different attacks, such as the one committed on election night against a Liberian-American teenager, assaulted by two other adolescents shouting racial epithets and "Obama" in Staten Island, New York.
Representatives of the seven organizations described their fear of a backlash in hate crimes after Barack Obama's victory in the presidential election. "This is a time of mixed emotions for a lot of folks; this is a very hopeful moment for our country. A lot of people are excited in the communities that we represent about the ascendancy of Barack Obama, but at the same time, some of us at the leadership of our communities are nervous that there might be a backlash," Murguia said.
Michael Lieberman, from the Washington Council of the Anti Defamation League, described the rise of hate groups whose Web sites were blocked by the amount of visits right after the election, as well as new recruitments by these groups and coalitions that have "positioned themselves as legitimate against illegal immigration in America."
Lieberman agreed with the rest of the leaders about what needs to be done next. Organization leaders mentioned that there's a need to remember that America is a nation of immigrants, to make progress in both asylum and immigration laws and that public officials must tone down the rhetoric in the immigration debate in the media.
When describing the influence of media coverage on immigration, Murguia mentioned a USA Today article last month that noted the recent resurgence of white supremacist groups was being "fueled by illegal immigration."
"We believe that the wave of hate unleashed by the polarized debate over immigration has led to the increase in violence and hate groups targeting Latinos. And the key players in this wave of hate are found among elected officials and the media, especially talk radio and cable news," said Murguia.
For Morial of the National Urban League, the response is "to challenge, to confront those people who use their elected positions and prominence in the news media to create an atmosphere that these crimes are somehow acceptable."
The civil rights leaders called for Congress to pass the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act. Wade Henderson, CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, said he was "pretty positive" that the next administration will include the immigration reform on the agenda and that this bill will be passed.
"For the vast majority of Americans, this election appeared to close the book on a long history of inequality in America. President-elect Obama's election speaks volumes about how far we've come as a nation, but make no mistake about it: it signifies hope, not the final victory over prejudice and racial hostility," Henderson said.
Related Articles:
Editorial: Latinos in Danger
Spanish-Language Media Decries Long Island Hate Crime
Forbidden Love in Shenandoah, PA: Behind Beating Deaths of Immigrants
Page
1 of 1
|
User Comments
KG Dickinson on Dec 17, 2008 at 20:30:45 said:
There is no such thing as a "HATE CRIME"
There is only CRIME.
If you break the law, it's a CRIME.
Same law for everyone, same punishment for everyone. Equal justice for all.
Illegal aliens?
Where's the enforcement of the immigration laws in this country? We don't need more laws, we need enforcement of the laws we have now.
What part of "Illegal" do you not understand?
I don't mind anyone coming here to the greatest country in the world as long as they do it LEGALLY.
This is AMERICA where everyone is supposed to be "equal" in the sight of the law, but because someone is a "minority" that somehow makes the crime worse?
We have to stop the "insert minority here"-American crap.
You're either an American or you're NOT.
bob on Nov 30, 2008 at 15:46:20 said:
Betty, Hernandez, and Karen,
Care to explain how exactly NCLR is racist, or has a hateful agenda? Its stated focus is on reducing poverty and discrimination, and improving opportunities for Hispanic People. Sounds like a good cause. There are similar national non profits for other minorities because sadly, there are still disparities and inequalities in the world. Are they doing something other than their stated mission by denouncing hate crimes against latinos/hispanics?
And BTW, Betty, La Raza also means "The People"
It is important to remember that the statistics:
1. 25 U.S. citizens are murdered by illegals everyday.
and
2. 13 U.S. citizens lose their lives everyday because of illegals driving drunk"
...are FALSE STATISTICS THAT CONTINUE TO GET USED, OVER AND OVER AGAIN. Rep. Steve King of Iowa, first used it in 2006, and based it falsely on the premise that 28% of all prisoners in all American jails and prisons are illegal aliens. It is actually closer to 3-4%. (from wikipedia, entry for Steve King
Karen on Nov 26, 2008 at 14:05:50 said:
The FBI reports show that the crimes against Hispanics in this country have actually declined. The only rise in hate crimes have been against gays.
LaRaza is just trying to stir up a problem to advance their own hateful agenda. I don't want to see anyone hurt and am sorry for the man who was killed. It is important to remember that 12 U.S. citizens are murdered by illegals everyday. Every day 13 U.S. citizens lose their lives because of illegals driving drunk. We never hear LaRaza even mention these facts. All they care about are their own ethnic kind. That's not American.
boyce/richard on Nov 26, 2008 at 12:53:52 said:
What rational, thoughtful, measured comments. Bravo! Leave the manure be spread by the sowers of hate. I never trust professionals, meaning professional Latinos, professional Blacks, professional Democrats,Republicans,Conservatives and Liberals. If promoting your 'CAUSE' is the way you pay your rent you have lost all credibility with me. Send those Social Security Number match letters and go E-Verify!
Nezzie on Nov 26, 2008 at 09:00:39 said:
It infuriates me to see "black leaders" standing with this organization and trying to align themselves with the black struggle. Latino's have nothing coming for black people. The majority of blacks I know have always said that these black groups NAACP, Rainbow Coalition, Black Chamber of
Commerce, Jessie Jackson, Al Sharpton, have never represented them, so Janet is really not doing herself any favors by thinking that black people are going to come on board with this. Latino's are killing black people left and right, wake up America, call your congressman and senators, and call Reid, Pelosi and O'bama's office, no in-state-tutition, no Dream Act. We want 287g and e-Verify, we want that border closed, no birthright citizenship, no anchor baby, stop giving away our tax dollars to these organization's, we have had enough. Perhaps the media will now start talking about all of the death's these illegal immigrants purport on American's with their DUI, and gang killings, rape, violent child rape, and home invasions and of course murder. These people are ruthless. Get ready for war people, something tells me we are getting ready to have one, just to save our country!
Arlene Cooper on Nov 25, 2008 at 21:20:36 said:
I really think someone should be showing outrage and concern for the number of American citizens killed by illegal aliens in this country. I'm sorry this happened to this boy, but really where is the outrage over Americans dying.
HernandezUSA on Nov 25, 2008 at 16:08:46 said:
NO to any immigrant bashing or any hate crimes regardless of anyones RACE (White,Black,Latino,Asian, or Mixed) .
NO to La Raza, Mecha, Aztlan and other single RACE agenda HATE groups.
HernandezUSA on Nov 25, 2008 at 15:51:24 said:
Say "NO" to immigrant bashing and HATE crimes against any RACE regardless of their Citizenship and LEGAL standing in this Country.
Say "YES" to the SAVE ACT and E-verify and stricter immigration Enforcement in the Workplace and at the borders.
SAY "NO" to RACIST groups like La Raza, Mecha, Aztlan and etc.. that feed and promote a Single RACE agenda. - they confuse the issue illegal aliens with HATE and FEAR.
Bettybb on Nov 25, 2008 at 15:05:14 said:
No one should be subject to a hate crime.
-->Note the pro preferential treatment for illegal aliens over legal immigrants lobby numbers for hate crimes are often skewed. The Southern Povery group does not use standard police methodology in its calculations.
Also note, La Raza is a racist group. It means THE RACE, as in the superior race. So be careful of who you listen to.