8:47 am By Maegan la Mamita Mala · Bizarro|From the Inbox|Funny|Immigration · 1 Comment
20 May 2010Hate mail and comments are as routine as breathing here at VivirLatino. I cannot even begin to calculate the time spent deleting hateful comments and emails telling us and you, our readers, to go back where we came from and to speak English (the fact that this site is in English apparently escapes them). Usually I ignore the comments and stupidity, pero sometimes, the idiocy is so great, so humorous, that I have to share.
Yesterday, VL’s inbox received a press release titled : “CALL ME CRAZY but Will Just One US President PLEASE STAND UP To Protect American Citizens”
It’s not hard to guess what the message was. Undocumented immigrants are characterized as stealing jobs and causing the economic downturn. Nothing new to see here folks.
But here’s the thing. If people calling themselves “Conservative Pundits” want to complain and send out releases, shouldn’t they be required to do a spell-check? By definition, a pundit is someone who claims authority on a subject. I cannot take you seriously if:
1: YOU INSIST ON USING CAPS IN YOUR RELEASE! There is a handy little punctuation symbol called an exclamation point. Use this for emphasis. CAPS IS CONSIDERED SCREAMING. I don’t need to scream. My words are emphatic and forceful enough.
2: You are historically inaccurate. The release starts off like this:
Is it me….or is it what it is? Since the first surge of illegal immigrants hit our country, not one President has had the cohunes’ to protect the citizens of the United States of America from…
What exactly are you considering the first surge of “illegal immigrants”? Where I’m from those are Europeans who came here. Apparently this person is using a textbook from Texas
3: You use the wrong words and render your argument incoherent.
Did you catch the mistake above? In an effort to use strong language, the writer of said release tries to use the Spanish word “cojones”, balls or did the writer intentionally mean to use the word meaning a type of palm tree and/or the nut from said palm tree?
Other laughable mistakes include:
CALL ME CRAZY but HAS ANYONE EVER WONDERED WHY GEORGE W. BUSH LEFT OUR BORDERS OPEN AFTER 9-11 TO ANY TERRORISTS WHO DESIRED TO SAUNDER ACROSS OUR OPEN BORDERS WITH A SUITCASE BOMB ON HIS BACK?
Saunder? I don’t know anyone who saunders across anything, including a border. Is this a new skill that the undocumented have developed?
and finally:
But hay; at least we have always had a President on hand to see it through to our determent.
Hay is for horses and determent prevents action.
You wanted us to call you crazy but can I call you stupid instead?
1:10 pm By la Macha · Bilingualism|children|Education|Immigration · 6 Comments
7 Oct 2009One of my biggest pet peeves about anti-immigration pro-nativist rhetoric is how it has created this universal idea in U.S. culture about what “stupid” really is, especially in the area of language. Specifically, if you don’t speak English, you are actually (among other things) stupid. Irritating logic to say the least, but somewhat understandable how easily racism can twist lack of comprehension into stupidity.
What is beyond fathomable–what just destroys my faith in humanity every time I hear it, is the idea that being *bilingual* (or speaking more than one language), means you are stupid. Or “lagging behind.” Or somehow unable to keep up with the world or simply unprepared for life.
Witness: This very interesting clip from CNN that showcases a white family that decided to send their white children to a school that teaches it’s kids in Spanish. Which means that the kids are fluently bilingual before they graduate.
Notice how many times the reporter let us know that the kids are not “lagging behind?” And that there is a waiting list to get into the school? And that, holy Jesus, it’s actually a GOOD thing to know more? That when you know more, you are actually SMARTER?
I’ve said it a thousand times, and I’ll say it again here. Only in the Good Ol’ U.S. of A. could the population be so blinded by racism that we actually refuse to be educated in the attempt to ‘be smart.”
Only here could we honestly take pride in and form a national identity around ignorance.
A great remake, and a necessary song this morning in light of the recent horrible news.
VivirLatino is a daily publication published by Mamita Mala Media, dedicated to featuring all the latest politics, culture, entertainment of interest to the diverse Latin@ diaspora.
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