Virginia Tech killing incident is reminiscent
of the massacre in San Ysidro by a racist

by
Ernesto Cienfuegos
La Voz de Aztlan

Los Angeles, Alta California - April 17, 2007 - (ACN) For Mexican-Americans, every time there is a mass killing in the USA our memories are directed to that horrific day of July 18, 1984 when an anti-Mexican racist massacred 22, mostly women and children, at a McDonald's Restaurant in San Ysidro, California. On that awful day a racist killer named James Oliver Huberty put on military style clothing and told his wife, "Society has had it's chance. I'm going hunting, hunting humans."

Huberty's motive was revenge against those he perceived to be responsible for his unemployment which was the predominate Mexican population of the border city of San Ysidro. He chose a McDonald's Restaurant which was frequented almost exclusively by customers of Mexican descent. He also chose a time when the restaurant was most crowded with families and their children. The killing spree was merciless and methodical. With a rapid fire assault rifle, Huberty aimed it with lethal accuracy at the children and while chasing them out into the street. One child was blown off his bike as he attempted to escape.

Many in the Mexican-American community consider James Oliver Huberty "the father" of the present day anti-Mexican vigilante movement. Huberty's statement, as reported by his wife, that he was going "hunting, hunting humans" was later adopted as a slogan by today's US/Mexico border vigilantes. In a May 2000 invitation to a border vigilante conference in Sierra Vista, Arizona that was sent out to extremist groups across the USA , the organizers referred to having some "fun in the sun" "hunting" Mexican immigrants

In the aftermath of the San Ysidro massacre as usual the blame was put on "guns" instead of where it should be placed and that is on a sick USA culture that is increasingly getting worse. An example of this sickness is the recent "nappy-headed hos" comment made by a racist national radio commentator in reference to the Rutgers University women's basketball team that many Americans thought as being "cute". Another is the New Jersey radio station that is presently calling Latino undocumented immigrants "cucarachas" (cockroaches). There is not one day that Americans do not hear over the air waves references to the "ragheads", "slanted eyed gooks", "wetbacks" and other racist terms. What is this garbage teaching America's youths? The USA is today very sick and getting worse.

Violence depicted on television, Hollywood movies and on video games have very negative effects on the minds of certain people in society. These effects have the very real potential of leading some individuals to commit violent acts against others. An example of this is the hate campaign that was led by a Disney owned radio station against an elementary school serving children of Mexican descent in Los Angeles. As part of a bigoted anti-Mexican campaign, KABC 790AM radio went after a Los Angeles Unified School District charter school named "Academia Semillas del Pueblo". The elementary school emphasises the indigenous culture of the children it serves which did not agree with the white shock jocks at the radio station. Repeated racist propaganda by the radio station against the school and its principal resulted in arson and bomb threats against the school. The hate campaign against the school disrupted the education of the children and the arrest of a parent who mistook a KABC radio reporter for a child molester at the school campus. What would Walt Disney think if he was alive? Mr. Disney loved children but apparently those who now run his company do not. The USA is today very sick and getting worse.

Another example is the violent video games that are made available to American children. These video games are creating killers of people, especially killers of people of color. There is one video game on the Internet that targets Mexican immigrants. It is called "Border Patrol" and is located at http://www.aztlan.net/racist_anti-mexican_game.htm This one game teaches white youths that it is OK to kill Mexicans and that it is fun. There are other games directed against American Indians, Blacks, Arabs, Muslims and Asians. We wonder if the gunman that killed 33 people at Virginia Tech practiced on or was affected by one of these violent video games. The USA is today very sick and getting worse.

Lastly, it seems that Americans have forgotten that "violence begets violence" whether this violence is committed by individuals or by the government. President George Bush was at Virginia Tech today bemoaning the victims of violence but does he forget the violence he has committed in foreign countries? Not long ago we heard one of his officials bragging about his "Shock and Awe" operation in Iraq. This operation caused the very violent deaths of many Iraqi women and children. This slaughter of civilians has greatly diminished the value of human life. The devaluation of human life in turn makes it much easier for some troubled individual to pick up a gun and go on a killing rampage as has occurred at Virginia Tech.


Related La Voz de Aztlan editorial:

Widespread "disrespect" afflicts the USA

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