Cultural Nationalism ,Chicanocentricism, Cowardness
Take Your Pick
One of the advantages of growing old is
that, if you look back in time, you see patterns in behavior and events. You
can anticipate that the boulder that Sisyphus is pushing up the hill will roll
back.
This morning I clicked on to the Los Angeles
Times and read that Gov. Jerry Brown -- who signed the Agricultural Labor
Relations Act in 1975 -- vetoed the Farm Worker Safety Act, legislation.
Many supporters were
disillusioned. It was the 50th year anniversary of the United Farm Workers’
struggle to get farmworkers the same protections that many animals enjoy.
Moreover, Jerry Brown was a favorite among Latino voters. I remember two
years ago a left-leaning Mexican American attorney saying that his priority was
to get Brown elected and he would not contribute to anyother cause.
In the context of history, Brown’s flip
flopping is no surprise. I remember in 1978 his opposition to Proposition 13
which contributed to destruction of California’s education system, only to join
the sponsors once the initiative passed. Brown offered no moral
leadership. Brown also recently vetoed the Trust Act that would have
limited the state's law enforcement's interactions with federal immigration
enforcement efforts. It would have been a bold answer to Arizona’s
nullification of federal powers.
The adage to never trust a gringo or a
liberal who comes speaking Spanish rings true. Brown knows that the
United Farm Workers do not have the same cache among liberals that they did in
the 1960s and 70s so he relies on Mexicans and Latinos having a short memory
and on liberals not caring enough
about farmworkers and immigrants. How many voters are there who care?
