Illegal Immigrants As Less Than Dogs

Daphne Eviatar of The Washington Independent reported on August 19 of the rising likelihood of the GOP alienating the Latino vote bloc by embracing the nativist stance on Health Care. She reports that "protesters at town hall meetings are increasingly railing against lawmakers for seeking to provide health care to illegal immigrants. . . the anger fomented by anti-health care reform groups has spilled over into nativist death threats. The issue of illegal immigrantion is now coming back into the consciousness of many opposed to health care reform and those who oppose any type of money and resources spent on illegal immigrant who seek health care."

But Eviatar's report does not stop there. "Last week outside President Obama's town hall meeting in New Hampshire, one protester shouted," Eviatar tells us, "'We don't need illegals,' adding, 'Send 'em back with a bullet in the head.'"

This left me speechless. This is beyond mere anger directed at the money and resources spent on the illegal immigrants when the times are tough. It is pure hatred, just unimaginable hatred. Can the protester actually be saying that the illegal aliens should be shot dead? Sent with a bullet in the head? Not only not receive medical attention, but they, all of them, men, women, children should be sent back dead, "with a bullet in the head"? Shot dead?

This is beyond repulsive, beyond any trace of humanity. This reminded me of an article that I read a long time ago when I was growing up in Germany. The article was about American white supremacy. Germans like to look at their own history through different lenses, so this article was not out of the ordinary. I don't quite remember if it was a print magazine or a news magazine. I do remember vividly, however, one particular detail of this article.

The reporter asked the white supremacist a simple question. Would he stop to help a black man on the road who had been hit by a car? Sure, the white supremacist said, just like I would help a dog.

This answer stuck with me for years.

The protester at the New Hampshire town hall meeting, and all those like him, have placed fellow humans below dogs. Repeat: these people have placed fellow human beings below dogs.

This is very, very sad.

Comments

[hooktender]

The comment was over the top, but it should be remembered that illegal aliens have brought all of this angst onto themselves.

[maggielynn]

I disagree with azbird about the intent of this blog. We cannot continue to ignore or deny the level of hate-talk that has become prevalent in our country. If we see it, hear it, or simply read about it, it's our responsibility to bring it into the open and show it for what it truly is. It is horribly wrong to make a comment about "sending illegals back with a bullet in the head". Surely, we've learned our lesson about the sad results of being non-responsive to "one person over-reacting." My feeling is that it does help the situation in that it sheds light on the wound, and hopefully, if nothing else, slows down the infection before it spreads.

[azbird]

This blog was written to be inflammatory and not for information. that was a horrible thing to say. It was one person over-reacting. This kind of reporting does nothing to help the situation

[devadasi]

I totally agree with ou azbird.....I'm a progressive democrat, and I believe illegal immigrants should be required to return to their homeland. The majority of Americans want this as well. Our services and affordable housing have been stretched to the max. It's too crowded here in America. We Americans need to deal with health care reform and a hundred other things. illegal immigrants need to do the right thing and leave. Immigrants from the time they began arriving here are for the most part opportunists, and I'm including my great grand parents who arrived here from Greece...yes the conditions were awful in Greece durng the beginnning of the 20th century....but those who didn't leave eventually managed and their children and grandchldren are thriving and doing very well.

[Yuna Shin - Huffpost Blogger]

As Eviatar implies, illegal immigrants are emerging as a scapegoat during these difficult economic times. It is one thing to say "let's send them back so that we may take care of ourselves first," but completely another to say "send them with a bullet in their head." Let's not lose sight of our humanity, our magnanimity.

[epistemologist]

These "conservatives" like to praise Jesus, but they ignore what Jesus said. Anyone taking Jesus seriously would provide health care for everyone, whether documented or not.