Where was the outrage three years ago this week? Where was this country's outrage when 9-year-old Brisenia Flores and her father Raúl were killed by Shawna Forde, a leader of Arizona's Minutemen Civil Defense Corps? Sure, Forde has been convicted and sentenced to death, but the fact remains that Brisenia and Raúl are gone, victims of Being Killed For Being Mexican.
You don't think the constant talk of those "damn illegals" and the hatred towards those who are different than you doesn't affect people? It does. And in the case of the Flores family, it was and forever will be a tragedy.
As a website dedicated to Brisenia says:
I did not personally know Brisenia or her family, but reading of the crime moved me deeply. The American political scene has of late been dominated by a dark and dangerous undercurrent of nativist, anti-immigrant demagoguery served up by irresponsible propagandists such as CNN's Lou Dobbs and Fox New's Bill O'Reilly and race-baiting politicians such as U.S. Congressman Tom Tancredo among many, many others. As a Chicano this vicious hate-mongering concerns me personally. We are a nation of immigrants who ourselves bear the mark of Cain for the crimes our ancestors committed against the original inhabitants of this land. The discussion of any issues and concerns that might arise from the flow of people and goods across our nation's Southern border should not and cannot be left solely to the dark voices of hatred and divisiveness that daily pollute our radio waves and cheapen our political discourse.
And if you don't think the neo-nativist rhetoric and hate does not impact how people act, then you don't have a clue. We leave you with this video below. God bless Brisenia and Raúl.
