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THE VIEW FROM HERE - Centrists neither believe nor disbelieve political statements, but rather we seek facts to ascertain the truthfulness or the lack there. Unlike those who still belong to a political party, we feel no compulsion to adopt the statements of either Wokers or MAGA.
Left Wing Dem Wokers have engaged in anti-Jewish Blood Libels for decades. Prior to Oct 7th, their work was done more or less out of sight as Jewish admissions to elite schools like Harvard were reduced and Jewish professors let go or not hired. After Hamas’ barbaric slaughter on Oct 7th, Americans became aware of the anti-Semitic nature of Wokeism. Wokers would say that Israel had the general right to defend itself (who doesn’t?), but any action by Israelis was unacceptable to the Wokers. In December 2023 in the Congressional hearing where the three university presidents testified, the American public saw for the first time, that calling for the extermination of Jews was acceptable at our elite universities as long as the context was correct. Thereafter, President Joe Biden consistently spewed forth Blood Libels . The term Blood Libel comes from the medieval charges that Jews would kidnap and kill Christian children to use their blood to make Passover Matzah, but now the term refers to outrageously false lies about Israel, as the Jewish homeland, in particular, or about Jews in general. Biden consistently promoted the falsehood that Israel was intentionally starving Gazans and he rotely repeated Hamas false claims about the number of Gazan women and children who had been maimed and died. Perhaps, the worse Woke Blood Libel was that Jews were recent White colonizers of the historic homeland of the Palestinians, over looking the fact that anyone who had read the Bible knew that Kind David had established Jerusalem as the Jewish capital 3,500 years ago. Furthermore, the Palestinians as a separate group of Arabs did not exist until about 1960.
The MAGA Right has similarly told its own Blood Libels against Mexicans, by the absurd claim that they are a recent invasion of thieves, rapists and drug dealers. To Donald Trump’s eternal discredit, he has had his own Joseph Goebbels in the form Stephen Miller to manufacture a stream of anti-Mexican falsehoods.
Like many Manhattanites, Donald Trump was only dimly aware of the United States East of New York. To Trump the word Mexican had no meaning. New York State with its excellent Regents system for high schooler knew from nothing about Mexicans. The fact that Mexicans founded Los Angeles like King David had made Jerusalem the Jewish capital was unknown. The Mexicans, in fact, were the indigenous people of Los Angeles, California, and most of the American Southwest. Mexicans may make the claim of indigenous not only because they were here long before the Anglos came when gold was discovered in 1848, but due to the fact that the Spanish had a much higher inter-marriage rate with the Indian population than Europeans who came to the East Coast. If one takes the time to actually look at a variety of Mexicans, one will see “whettos” (SpanLish) who still look Northern Europeans and darker Indios. In fact, their mixed heritage is still part of their culture. Un Indio Quiere Llorar I, however, can safely walk pass ICE agents without fearing they will kidnap for being Mexican.
Due to Stephen Miller’s incessant anti-Mexicanism, Trump has launched a physical attack on Los Angeles due a non-existent invasion of Mexicans. As Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem admitted, Trump has militarized the National Guard and brought the US Marines to Los Angeles streets to “Liberate the city from its socialist and burdensome leadership.” The immediate attack on our Senior US Senator was 100% consistent with Trumps’ purpose to remove our duly elected government.
As this is being written, ICE agents are scouring Los Angeles streets to arrest anyone who looks Mexican. As the nation saw with the Secret Service attack on Senator Padilla, American citizenship is no barrier from ICE aggression. When the world learned that California’s Senior Senator had been rousted, the lie popped up that he was charging at Noem and placing her in imminent danger. When a White person upsets ICE by asking a question in favor of a immigrant, they are attacked, handcuffed, and swept away on the bogus grounds that the person had attacked an ICE agent. In Nazi Germany, being friendly with a Jew could get one in trouble. As for NYC’s Comptroller, Brad Lander learned the same is true in America. When ICE attacked Lander, there were multiple of cell phones videoing the lie about Lander’s putting his hands on an ICE agent. Still, it took New York Governor Hochul to show up at the detention center to gain his release. No one knows the whereabout of Adrian Andrew Martinez, the 20 year old US citizen of Mexican background whom ICE was simultaneously arrested in Pico Rivera in a Walmart parking lot on the bogus charge that he had attacked an ICE agent.
As Martin Niemoller advised, “when they first came for the trade unionists, I did not peak out, when they came for the communists, I did not speak out, when they came for Jews, I did not speak out, and when they came for me, there was no one left to speak out.” Today, Niemoller could say about America, when MAGA came for the Mexicans, then for US citizens, and then for elected officials, the courts did not speak out.
Unitary Presidency
While the Ninth Circuit may reinstate the injunction prohibiting Trump from nationalizing the California National Guard, the final word will come from the US Supreme Court. Presently, Chief Justice Roberts advocates for the Unitary Presidency which transfers Congressional power to the President and places the President above the law. The Supreme Court has already granted Trump immunity from criminal behavior if he declares the crime advanced his policies. It is important to note that Trump merely has to make a declaration with no judicial questioning about the accuracy of the declaration. Likewise, the Roberts Court may rule that as the President, all Trump has to do is declare an emergency in order to deploy the US Marines wherever he believes the present leadership is “Socialist and burdensome.” That seems to be Roberts’ position on Trump’s seizing power under the Unitary Presidency Theory; the courts have no power to overrule the President’s declaration. Chief Justice should heed both Martin Niemoller and the fate of the leader of the SA Nazi Ernst Röhm BTW, Unitary Presidency is a euphemism for military dictatorship.
While Trump often uses the more inclusive word “immigrants” for the foreign hordes invading America, Stephen Miller’s focus appears to be on Mexicans. Mexicans, however, merit a entirely different status from Haitians, South Americans, Africans, etc. With good reason Cubans were treated differently. One foot on dry land, and they’ve got the right to remain in the USA. This “wet foot, dry foot policy” started in 1995, but ended by Trump in 2017.
Mexicans, as distinguished from all others, are the original population of southwest in general and Los Angeles in particular. There is no part of Los Angeles’ history where Mexicans were not constant contributors. In fact, during Mexican War (1848) the Californios and especially the Angelenos were eager to be free of the government of Mexico City. In the years after 1848, like the Jews after 70 C.E., the Mexicans were made aliens in their own land. Nonetheless, Mexicans continued to come to Alta California, Del Norte with the active encouragement of the Anglo establishment which want cheap labor. Except during the Great Depression, there no desire to remove Mexicans. Rather, keeping the constantly growing Mexican population in a precarious situation was “good businesses.” Mexican garment employees and farm workers are paid less and usually are not provided benefits. That is one reason so many Mexicans opened small businesses.
America Has Always Functioned like a Gigantic Abusive Fraternity
Immigrants are treated like garbage for the first generation, but after they work hard, they can earn respectability. We no longer see signs “No Jews, Irish or Dogs Allowed.” The GOP herald the accomplishments of Ronald Reagan who is of Irish background. People no longer refer to Italians as WOPs (WithOut Passport). Likewise, millions of Mexicans are disappearing into our middle class. However, for our society to prosper, we need more Mexicans directly from Mexico, and we need as many as possible to stay here and work their way up our socio-economic system.
Trump will learn that trying to deport Mexicans from LA is like trying to deport Jews from Jerusalem.
(Richard Lee Abrams has been an attorney, a Realtor and community relations consultant as well as a CityWatch contributor. You may email him at [email protected])
