Claiming that the County of Los Angeles is somewhat indifferent to their wants and needs, especially in times of budgetary stress, there are those in the East Los Angeles community that ostensibly want to form a new city to be created out of the area known as East Los Angeles.
Mexican activists have decided to keep a low profile while they privately claim that this would be a first step in legitimizing the culture of Mexico and creating an important political voting block that can better serve the needs of their overwhelmingly Latino residents.
“Commonly mistaken for a part of Los Angeles, East L.A. is actually an unincorporated section of Los Angeles County, with more than 130,000 people — 96 percent of them Latino — packed into 7.4 square miles.”
“Cityhood proponents complain that East L.A. is treated as an afterthought by the county Board of Supervisors, and they want the community to take charge of its own destiny.”
" ‘We're a nationally branded area,’ said Diana Tarango, vice president of the East Los Angeles Residents Association, the prime backer of the effort. ‘We should be making our own decisions about planting trees on the street or putting up light poles.’"
“While outsiders often see the area as gang-plagued and poverty-ridden, East L.A. possesses cultural and political symbolism for Mexican-Americans.”
The center of Latino culture …
“Fernando Guerra, director of the Center for the Study of Los Angeles at Loyola Marymount University, pronounced East L.A. ‘the epicenter of Latino culture.’"
First stop …
“For decades, East L.A. has been a first stop for immigrants just over the border, though these days there are nearly as many Salvadoran pupuserias selling filled tortilla patties as Mexican taquerias selling tacos.”
“East L.A. is a fusion of cultures north and south of the border. Spanish is the predominant language, but it is a hybrid version, Spanglish, punctuated with Hispanicized English words: "breka" for break, "marqueta" for market, "cora" for quarter.”
A magnet for illegal aliens and gang activity …
There seem to be five basic reasons why this area serves as a magnet for those recently arrived illegal aliens who are seeking jobs in the Los Angeles area.
- Protective coloration … in essence a camouflaged environment where they do not stand out from the general population.
- Friendly atmosphere … most illegal aliens are both impoverished, uneducated and speak very little English. Since the predominant language of the area is Spanish, the area seems more welcoming and hospitable than other areas.
- Relaxed law enforcement … Both the Sheriff’s department and the Los Angeles Police Department have an officially relaxed policy when it comes to illegal immigrants. Code enforcement activities are mostly restricted to major problems and it is not uncommon to see areas indistinguishable from Mexican barrios.
- Activist organizations abound to assist the newcomer to find housing, employment and become a part of the community.
- Employment as a day laborer is often at hand.
Assimilation?
“Neighborhoods seem plucked straight from Latin American villages: a backyard rooster can be heard crowing, or a man peddles the rice-based drink horchata from a shopping cart. Brilliantly colored murals of the Virgin of Guadalupe and Aztec chieftains decorate walls of housing projects and corner grocery stores.”
As far as I can tell, most immigrants do not want to assimilate and dream of returning to the native homes with enough money to retire comfortably. Sometimes, things just do not work out and they become rooted to the community. Multi-generational families continue to live as they did in Mexico.
Marxist and socialistic-style activism abounds …
“In the 1960s and '70s, the community was the focus of the burgeoning Chicano civil-rights movement.”
“In 1970, police and thousands of Chicano anti-Vietnam war protesters battled in the street, and Los Angeles Times columnist Ruben Salazar was killed in the melee. A park in East L.A. is named for him. A boulevard nearby carries the name of Cesar Chavez, the migrant farmworker leader.”
The unions, with their far-left political leanings also extend a welcoming hand to those who will become unionized workers and enrich the union’s coffers and political base.
“Proponents of cityhood hope to draw on that cultural pride. The bid marks East L.A.'s fourth attempt at incorporation since 1961; the last one was in 1974. Tarango and others say the movement failed because of political infighting.”
“Rep. Grace Napolitano, D-Calif., who supports cityhood, said she is encouraged this time because residents are well-organized and informed.”
"It has a great chance of passing,’ said the congresswoman, whose district includes East L.A. ‘But they will need to allay fears that incorporation will mean an increase in property taxes.’"
Like the trade unions, both the Catholic Church and democrat party look to a rising tide of Hispanics to secure their financial and political futures.
A matter of signatures …
“The residents association must first submit a petition by December asking a county commission to conduct a study on whether a city of East L.A. would have an adequate tax base. So far, organizers have collected about half the 10,000 signatures needed, said Oscar Gonzales Jr., association president.”
Unfortunately, there does not seem to be a convenient method of restricting the signers of the cityhood petition to legal citizens and California residents.
And funding …
“Gonzales said he expects the study will be favorable — a similar report ordered up by the residents association found the city would generate $51 million in revenue, well above an expected budget of $45 million.”
By some measures, this area would not be self-sustaining without subsidized infrastructures and might become an entirely subsidized independent city within the county. They might be a city, but they will still require the use of country funds and infrastructure.
The goal …
Activists believe that this city would become a center for political power and increased activism which would, over time, spread outward to encompass the entirety of the Los Angeles basin. In effect, providing Mexico with an island of influence within the rich Southern California marketplace.
We need a comprehensive immigration policy now …
There is no doubt that illegal aliens have corrupted or destroyed our healthcare, education, judicial, retirement, social and cultural infrastructure. While relatively small numbers of legal immigrants can be more easily assimilated into Southern California life, waves of continuing illegals, many crossing the border to ensure their children are born as Americans, are destroying what we have come to know as Southern California.
There is no doubt that we need to first seal our borders and enact legislation that provides that children assume the nationality of their parents rather than become United States citizens.
There is no doubt that we need a secure identification card and a revamped social security system.
There is no doubt that we need a guest worker program and a rational plan to return those who overstay their work visas to their country of origin.
And there is no doubt that we need to grant some form of permanent residence, not citizenship, to those who register as alien residents and who do not violate our laws.
We need to have the national will to deport those who are criminals, gang members, dope dealers, major felons and those who disrespect our laws by driving drunk or without insurance.
“If the bid for cityhood passes muster with the study commission and the county supervisors, the question will be put to the voters of East L.A. The supervisors are not taking a position until they see the study.”
What can YOU do?
While we should treat all fellow human beings with respect, we should demand reciprocity from those who are enjoying our hospitality.
We should demand that Mexico provide American citizens with the same rights that Americans provide their citizens. At the present time, Mexico is a harsh environment for most Americans. Takes of government official and police shakedowns, kidnappings and other mistreatment. Getting caught driving drunk or possessing a weapon and you go directly to jail – no first call, no legal rights, no nothing. Especially if you lack the money to bribe the local officials. Harsh words, but true.
We should demand that our next president make comprehensive immigration reform a priority, starting with border control for the safety, security and financial well-being of American citizens.
We should work to deny East Los Angeles any bid for cityhood as it might have adverse consequences on the rest of Los Angeles. Or at least until a majority of the proposed city’s residents are proven to be legal citizens of the United States.
While I respect and enjoy Mexican culture, I do not want to live in or near Little Tijuana.
Opposing opinions are always welcome.
-- steve
Quote of the day: “There is no moral precept that does not have something inconvenient about it.” -- Denis Diderot
A reminder from OneCitizenSpeaking.com: a large improvement can result from a small change…
The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane. -- Marcus Aurelius
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