By Alvaro Huerta
As a scholar and proud
Latino of Mexican descent, I'm appalled, but not surprised, by Donald Trump's
disparagement of Mexican immigrants.
In announcing his bid for
the White House, Trump didn't mince his words: "When Mexico sends its
people, they're not sending their best. ... They're sending people that have
lots of problems. ... They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're
rapists. And some, I assume, are good people."
I will not try to counter
these baseless remarks. In doing so, I will fall into the trap that Trump sets
up, like provocateur extraordinaire Ann Coulter. It's not about logic or
reason. It's about branding and self-marketing.
Trump and Coulter are very
intelligent. By dismissing them, critics ignore one simple point: When they
make ridiculous or bombastic comments, Trump and Coulter know exactly what
they're doing. They're grabbing national headlines. Free of cost.
Since he's entered the
crowded Republican presidential race, Trump has become a major liability for
his party. Due to his remarks and his feuding with the influential
Spanish-language network Univision, among other Latino groups and individuals,
Trump has taken the spotlight from his Republican opponents. Instead of
attacking the likely Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, the GOP
contenders have been relegated to spectators on "The Trump Show."
Trump's comments will not
only tarnish his image among the more than 54 million Latinos, the majority of
Mexican ancestry, but his hurtful words will also continue to sully the already
damaged Republican brand among this country's largest minority group. This is a
lesson that 2012 GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney learned the hard way when
his advice to undocumented immigrants to "self-deport" didn't go down
too well. Given that Republican leaders haven't adequately condemned Trump's
statements, the party's weak response speaks volumes to Latinos.
If Democrats want to win
the White House in 2016, they should not only denounce Trump's remarks, but
secretly hope that he secures the Republican nomination. Then Democrats can
cross their fingers that Trump selects Ann Coulter as his running mate.
[Alvaro Huerta is an
assistant professor of urban and regional planning and ethnic and women's
studies at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. He is the author of
Reframing the Latino Immigration Debate:
Towards a Humanistic Paradigm (San Diego State University Press). He wrote
this for Progressive Media Project, a source of liberal commentary on domestic
and international issues; it is affiliated with The Progressive magazine.]
3 comments:
Alvaro, I agree with the thrust of your article: Trump's racism should be denounced, his idiocy should be exposed.
Then too, focusing on his extremism could lull la gente into believing that other candidates are "better." Trump is the village idiot that the Repub feudal lords allow to dance in the square where he'll attract the arrows of outrage, away from themselves, like Rubio and Cruz, and especially Bush.
It's not only ridiculous statements than harm us; more it's the attacks on our standard of living and on our civil rights we need to meet head-on. And those can come from any candidate, even though the Repub's are obviously more harmful.
As I said, I agree with you. So long as we're not lured in self-satisfaction over having pilloried Trump in the village square, while the Koches and Bush steal the village. – RudyG de La Bloga
Great points, Rudy. Trump will self-implode, especially after taking shots at veterans. The key here is to argue that he's an integral part of the GOP and not the drunken uncle that spoils family gatherings.
Meanwhile, in the Phoenix Public LIbrary, there's been a run on Donald Trump's books.
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