Hate-Mongering Conservative Commentators Using Swine Flu to Promote Racism!

Responsible members of the Republican party need to speak out IMMEDIATELY against the conservative commentators in their own ranks using swine flu as an excuse to spew out racist hatred.

Radio, TV and newspaper personalities have jumped on the illness as a platform to attack "illegal aliens" for being responsible for carrying the disease across the Mexican border and infecting innocent Americans.

Despite the fact that there is no evidence to support such claims, talk radio hosts Michael Savage and Neal Boortz, radio and Fox TV personality Glenn Beck, and columnist Michelle Malkin are spreading them faster than the contagion.

"Illegal aliens are bringing in a deadly new flue strain. Make no mistake about it," blares Michael Savage.

"I've blogged for years about the spread of contagious diseases from around the world into the US as a result of uncontrolled immigration," writes Michelle Malkin.

"What happens if there's a rash of deaths in Mexico... and if you're a family in Mexico and people are dying and Americans are not, why wouldn't you flood this border?" announces Glenn Beck.

These loud mouths are also trying to convince their audiences that Islamic terrorists have somehow been able to do what has eluded scientists elsewhere in the world — concoct a deadly new flu virus — and then introduce it into the Mexican population.

"What better way to sneak a virus into this country than to give it to Mexicans....then spread a rumor there there are construction jobs here, and there they come," blathers Boortz.

Savage — "make no mistake about it" — believes that radical Islamic countries planted the virus in Mexico knowing that humans make the "perfect mules for bringing the strain into America."

OK, you ignoramuses: what you're saying is idiotic and racist on so many levels, it has to be called out.

#1. Why would we believe that Islamic countries or terrorist groups would have virologists capable of creating a new bio-terrorist flu? Didn't we fall for the Weapons of Mass Destruction line already, and start a war over it?
#2. If terror groups were capable of planting it among Mexicans — why wouldn't they be just as capable as planting it among Americans? If they couldn't get into the country, they'd just need to get a few of their own infected people to hang out in a foreign airport with flights going to the US.
#3. Since most of the Mexicans who are sick are in Mexico City, hundreds of miles from the US border, how exactly would they just pick up and "rush it?"

Furthermore, the first American cases of swine flu have turned up in New York City students who recently returned from a trip to Cancun, Mexico — they brought it with them. They're the human mules! American tourists returning from Mexico are at this point virtually all the other culprits spreading the new flu!

The fact that this new flu is just an excuse to spread racism becomes even more disgustingly apparent when Michael Savage blares to his audience that he will protect himself by having "no contact anywhere with illegal aliens and that starts with the restaurants." He calls people who dine out "morons who eat in restaurants with illegals all over the kitchen."

You could substitute the word "vermin" for "illegals" and he sounds frighteningly reminiscent of the Nazis talking about the Jews.

It's time for Republican National Committee chairman, Michael Steele, to speak out against this virulent strain of looniness. Immigrants aren't responsible for infecting Americans with swine flu — but racist commentators like these are spreading a far more destructive disease: hate!

For more on Racist Commentators follow Bonnie Fuller at twitter.com/bonniefuller.

Comments

[starkcr31]

I'm not going to sit here and say I agree with all the conservative radio hosts (Michael Savage is insane and should not be on the air) or even most of them, but how, exactly am I a racist for not wanting illegal immigrants causing my health insurance to be sky high because we are paying their health care? We don't oppose immigration, we oppose illegal immigration. Do you realize the percentage of criminals in our prison system that are illegally here? I guess that must mean our justice system is racist, right? I'm in no way, shape or form a racist but because I don't want illegal people from Mexico crowding up our prisons, stealing our identities (hard to get a job with no SSN) and getting free medical care that I and other tax payers have to pay for, I am called a racist. Seriously, what has this great country come to?

[l8yla]

We are a hispanic blue collar family. My family has been in this country for over 50 years. I have a 14 year old daughter that came down with the normal everyday flu. She cried for 3 days thinking she had the swine flu. I told her what makes you think you have the swine flu? She said ' mom the kids are saying that their parent tell them that the mexicans carry the swine flu, I am mexican and I have the flu". I was outraged that this swine flu did indeed play a role towards race. Who knows the real truth, where it really originated, and how it spread. If the people of Mexico were high in deaths, it's because they dont have the resources as we do to get the medical attention needed. We need to see and focus on the details rather than on race.

[AuntiepoppyCock]

And the vicious cycle of racism continues. When will everyone evolve? I think it is terrible that children learn intolerance and misinformation. As if adults didn't have enough propaganda to get to the truth.

[markmac]

I do not know which is worse: GlenBeck ranting about swine flu; you writing about Glen Beck; or, me reading you writing about about Glen Beck. Liberal and conservative fanatics need each other. Conservatives crack the whip and liberals whine. This is a S&M relationship. Which makes me some kind of twisted voyuer.

[digeridoo]

Dear Ms. Fuller -

Thank you for your insightful article. I disagree only with your conclusion - the expectation that Republicans will self-regulate and squash their own hate speech is fantasy. They can no more give up hate than they can give up breathing - it is inextricably part of who they are.

The solution to this scourge is to treat it for what it is - criminal behavior. Hate-mongers should be prosecuted for promoting racism. In as much as that overlaps with the Republican platform, then those aspects of Republicanism are illegal. We need to stop treating them with kid gloves.

[wildbluyonder11]

Is it just me or is this Swine flu thing be blown way out of proportion? They've already said that the regular annual flu season sees around 35000 deaths, just from the regular ol', plain ol' seasonal flu. And here the media and our government seems to be working the populace into a frenzy over how many deaths? Less than 100? Does anyone else remember Rahm Emmanual saying "Never waste the chance to take advantage of a crisis"? Sounds to me like the Obama administration is creating one here. This one will be to push through "health care reform" AKA the Obama Nationalized Health Care System. Talk about fear-mongering, huh?

[Ginger5]

But alas you make this comment long after the virus has been analyzed and the mortality is no longer 10-25%

[edfree]

This Liberal Media Jargon is getting old.Everyone knows there are wacko jobs on both sides.How about reporting the news.While everyone is bickering about senseless bullshit our government is selling us down a socialism nightmare.

[dan-o]

The first day Dr Sanjay Gupta was in Mexico City he was talking to Wolf Blitzer by phone. He was talking from what he said was the hospital where the first known death had happened. He said the first death and he called him patient zero, was a Pakistani man who died after being in the country for two weeks. I watched for Dr Gupta's reports afterward and nothing more was said about it. If I were a conspiracy theorist, I would think something was being covered up.

[ignorlib]

If you oppose illegal immigration then you're a racist. If you don't like Obama's spending spree then you're a racist. Pretty classy stuff there libs.

[EconPadawan]

If you are for health care reform then you're a socialist. If you oppose torture then you're for the terrorists. If you agree with diplomacy over preemptive strikes then you are a terrorist sympathizer. Pretty classy stuff there neocons.

[wildbluyonder11]

Do you mean the "reform" that they've tried and failed at in Europe and Canada? Do you mean the "diplomacy" that Europe has been trying with Iran for the last 6 years that has only given them more time to develop their nuclear weapons program? Do you mean the "torture" that is a tickle on the chin as compared to what our enemies do to people that they capture (like hacking their heads off with a dull machete while they scream!). Pretty stupid there libs. Put down the koolaid and get a clue.

[CJ1]

With Bush and his cronies, Republicans demonized college degrees, science, thinking, even! And so now its members don't seem to have two functioning brain cells to rub together. And then, they go and complain we don't "respect their opinions..."

[Marshall Gross]

Republicans demoize colleges not degrees... College are a big cesspool for liberals where professors shove down thier own liberal thinking and dont allow for an "open" thinking mind...

[1088]

First it was the blacks now is the Mexicans! Republicants are hateful, that is the reason they love demonizing people who are not white. Now, they hide behind policies as a facade for hating our President because he's black.

[A4D2N]

He is half white and half black I believe. Listen carefully ... its about policies that are bankrupting the country even more than the previous administration. People are catching on to this and has nothing to do with white/black, Dem/Repub no matter how you want to make it so.

[Marshall Gross]

Republicans dont like Obama because hes a socialist not because hes black! oh btw...98% of blacks voted for the guy now who is racist?

[bluejoni2525]

Right wing radio is so pathetic ,all they can do is whip their sheeple into a frenzy by blaming immigrants. Won't it be interesting if the epicenter proves to be that Smithfield pig farm or as some are now saying it started north of the border in the good ole USA.

[sixstringer1000]

And I guess that it is okay that all the liberal media outlets are slobbering all over Obama and his administration?
Whenever any democrat does something illegal, such as tax evasion, or just general corruption, the mainstream media do not even report it, and if they do, they put an astronomical amount of spin on the story to make it seem like the crime committed was actually a good thing.
I do watch the Fox network, and I have to say that they are more even handed in their reporting than any of the others.

[American50]

http://www.georgiawomenformccain.org/ObamaCartoon_ObamaNation.gif

[garymc8]

Insight from a foreign friend: You have a great country, and we can't wait for you to finish it.

[garymc8]

Its about selling FLU VACCINES on the black market for a LOT of MONEY!
Pharma is a disgustingly greedy industry. Remember the Avian flu scare?
What was happening politically at the time? We need to constantly compare and contrast disease and political climate to check for SMOKESCREEN RIPOFFS. We can learn a lot from bushco. Like how they constantly looted America while we were at war, and we weren't supposed to be paying attention. How the financial meltdown wasn't a meltdown until Obama was officially elected, yet not sworn in? Aren't we as a nation about to address the Illegal Alien issue? Seems very convenient to one side if the majority of Americans are convinced the flu came from Mexico. Here we go again changing the issue using fear, so we don't discuss labor standards being broken down and trade disparities, we try to boil it down to "the mexicans are unhealthy". Underlines the need for world health care.

[TrueD]

In the bigger context of history we should remember that immigrants do spread diseases. In 1492, there were perhaps 100 million people in the Americas, most of whom were quickly killed by the diseases that our European ancestors brought to these shores [Ronald Wright's book entitled "Stolen Continents"]. When I say our ancestors I mean yours, mine, Savage's, Limbaugh's, etc.

[alzuk]

This is all part of the Republican smoke machine. It is designed to place blame quickly so that people will not start asking real questions like: Did the flu originate in the Smithfield Pig (Big US Corporation) farms located at ground zero for the virus. This is what the local Mexicans believe and what the Republicans will try to suppress in order to protect their corporate donor.

[happykiddo]

umm....this flu virus didn't originate from a pig. so your point is meaningless.