Racism is Alive and Well in Novato

On June 6, there was a on Novato Patch about about a 19-year-old man who was arrested on charges of lewd and lascivious acts with a child under 14 and unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor. The article further also noted that his occupation was listed as laborer and that his immigration status was being checked. It did not state his alleged country of origin nor that he had actually been found guilty of the crimes for which he has been arrested. (This is America after all, where we theoretically still believe that people are innocent until proven guilty.)

There were 23 comments about the article, and they include some fascinating opinions. (Note, I left spelling as is in the quotes.)

"This stinks!!! I hate that they will not deport him and nothing much will be done and it will happen again ... and again ... and agian ..... and ......"How do we know he will not be deported or is actually deportable if his immigration status has not yet been established? Is it because his surname is Spanish? So is my wife's, and a lot of other US citizens'."

"They do not belong here if they are illegal and especially if they rape little girls. Please don't alow this to happen in our town city of Novato!!!"

Who doesn't belong here? Remember, the article made no mention of race or national origin.

"If you have a collage student home for the summer, folks like this are taking jobs that our kids use to get to have some spending money. Meg Whitman's part time housekeeper was making $23 an hour for 9 years, wouldn't a citizen like to have that job?"

Where to begin?

First of all, "folk like this" is code for "non-white illegal immigrants."

Second, "they" are not taking anything that was not offered by employers, who nobody seems to be blaming. Is it because most of the employers are white?

Thirdly, I'd love to know any housekeeper in Novato who is getting paid $23 an hour.

"As many as possible people should write to Judy Arnold, our Supervisor, and share this story. She should hear this ove and over. She lopves our illegal Mexican population, its good for business she states."

OK, so now we have established that the problem is "the illegal Mexican population." If such crimes had been committed by an "illegal" Swedish alien, would the illegal Swedes be our new focus of hatred?

"illegals = CRIME"

This is one of my favorites. The fact is that the biggest crimes lately in the U.S. have been committed by white male citizens, or have we forgotten the recession that has still not ended and the millions of people who lost their homes, pensions and jobs due to the greed of already wealthy citizens?

"Isn't it enough that he is here illegally and that he was having sex with a child under 14?"

Again, no trial has been held, no verdict has been rendered.

All of this makes my stomach turn.

Novato is a town filled with really wonderful people, but it also seems to have people who are very clear on the fact that all of the woes of Novato can be tied to illegal immigrants. And let's be clear. That's just code for non-white, non-English speaking poor people.

If I may mix metaphors, some people have spiked the punch at some tea parties and some people have consumed way too much.