The climate in Shenandoah (PA) is under observation.
Things have worsened after two groups of demonstrators met face to face at a town park, last August 30.
Some 300 demonstrators (the larger of the groups) demanded that the undocumented leave Shenandoah.
A few others, headed by Crystal Dillman, widow of Luis Eduardo Ramírez Zavala, stated that immigrants “are also human”.
The 300 demonstrators were at the park for various hours speaking of and showing banners with anti-immigrant messages. They were convened by Voice of the People, and carried posters with messages of rejection and incrimination towards immigrants.
At least 25 state police officers and Latino community members prevented more Hispanics from passing through in order to avoid confrontation between both groups.
In reply to the banners, Dillman pulled out a Mexican flag, while the crowd cried “Crystal go to Mexico”.
A few minutes earlier, around 150 people gathered at a local temple to sing and send messages of peace.
The small town located about two hours north of Philadelphia has become the eye of the storm after a group of white youths beat a Mexican immigrant to death last July.
Three youngsters were arrested; two of them, Brandon Piekarski, 16, and Collin Walsh, 17, were accused of homicide and ethnic intimidation, among others.
The third, Donovan Donchak, 18, is accused of aggravated assault and ethnic intimidation, among others.
Donchak was out on bail, after paying a $70,000.
Hispanic leaders have questioned the fact that the two youths accused of homicide were allowed to leave jail after bail was set at $50,000.
“We know that these are bails in which only 10 percent is applicable”, stated Reverend Miguel Rivera of the National Latino Coalition of Christain Ministers and Leaders (CONLAMIC for its initials in Spanish).
Rivera, who was present at the temple gathering, said that in being judged as adults, these youths will face a jury in a predominantly white town and which shall thus favor the accused.
“If the tables were turned, we would witness that justice does not equally apply to Latinos”, he said.
In his opinion, this murder involved an initiation rite of a “white supremacist gang” and has a lot to do with the anti-immigrant measures promoted by the mayor of the neighboring city of Hazleton, Lou Barletta.
Life has changed a lot in Shenandoah since the homicide, said town mayor Thomas O’Neill.
“The mere existence of a demonstration such as this, which uses immigrants as an excuse, but which is clearly racist, does not help the inhabitants of Shenandoah”, he stated.
He insisted on creating a liaison committee to attend to the complaints and worries of the Latino community in Shenandoah.
With regard to the threats that members of the Hispanic community ensure they have been the targets of, O’Neill stated that he was unaware of such incidents.
“I am the most interested in ensuring that this does not happen in our town”, he stated. “It’s difficult to know if this is true if people do not report it to the authorities”.
He said that if the people are scared of turning to the police, they can turn to him to accompany them to report such acts.
“If anyone feels threatened, he/she can come call me at home and I will answer”, he affirmed. The mayor’s phone number is 570.
Rivera blows hot air...gets his 15 seconds of fame.....
Escrito por
soria savied, septiembre 09, 2008
"In his opinion, this murder involved an initiation rite of a “white supremacist gang” and has a lot to do with the anti-immigrant measures promoted by the mayor of the neighboring city of Hazleton, Lou Barletta.
Rev. Rivera...out to get his 15 minutes of fame...has absolutely no evidence that there the alleged attackers belonged to any type of gang...Rev. Rivera's defamatory, and completely reckless statements will be shared with the families of the accused. Voice of the People is not anti-immigrant and never has been...the problem here is that this so-called opinion journalist can't fathom the reality that in this country we expect all immigrants no matter their country or nation of origin to respect our laws,our sovereignty, our customs and norms as does every other nation in the world.Race has been inserted into this debate because of ethno-supremacist groups like LA Raza, PRLDEF, MALDEF, all of whom have used the race card to fill their coffers with public money and private donations . Let's not jump to conclusions here...look at what happened in the Duke La Crosse case....
Reportar abuso
Votos:+1
Poor Shenandoah
Escrito por
Diego Rivera, septiembre 09, 2008
To bad there isn't a movie about racism in Shenandoah sitting on the shelf at Paramount. Imagine the shock and embarrassment the people of Shenandoah would feel if the world could see the hatred that spews out of the mouths of its residents. I suspect the humiliation would be so great that most people would say they are from some where else. Wrong is wrong. The 3 men that are being charged with the beating death of Luis Ramirez should be made to pay. Imagine that Luis Ramirez was George Smith, would the people care if he were Irish? I doubt it. Would it even be an issue that he wasn't born in Shenandoah? I doubt it. So put the ignorance aside and look at this thing with your eyes and not the hatred and ignorance that fills your heart. If George Smith were beaten to death by the same three men, would you not want justice for George?
Reportar abuso
Votos:+1
Taking a job you do not want
Escrito por
Diego Rivera, septiembre 10, 2008
I guess if I had a choice I would rather be the anchor on Channel 6 or the head of a corporation. Instead most immigrants come to this country to find jobs. If the jobs picking tomatoes could be done by our fellow Americans, then the immigrants wouldn't risk their lives crossing the desert or put their lives in the hands of unknown, possibly dangerous people. So quit complaining about their legal status. If your own countrymen cared so much about you the way you care about protecting a job your to lazy to take then the immigrants would stop coming here to find work. The fact is we've become a country of fat, lazy people, waiting for the government to give us refunds and buy our votes with tax breaks. If McCain or Obama want to buy my vote, they better dig into their own pockets so that it hurts them not the countries limited resources.
Rev. Rivera...out to get his 15 minutes of fame...has absolutely no evidence that there the alleged attackers belonged to any type of gang...Rev. Rivera's defamatory, and completely reckless statements will be shared with the families of the accused. Voice of the People is not anti-immigrant and never has been...the problem here is that this so-called opinion journalist can't fathom the reality that in this country we expect all immigrants no matter their country or nation of origin to respect our laws,our sovereignty, our customs and norms as does every other nation in the world.Race has been inserted into this debate because of ethno-supremacist groups like LA Raza, PRLDEF, MALDEF, all of whom have used the race card to fill their coffers with public money and private donations . Let's not jump to conclusions here...look at what happened in the Duke La Crosse case....