Daphne Eviatar of The Washington Independent reported on August 19 of the rising likelihood of the GOP alienating the Latino vote bloc by embracing the nativist stance on Health Care. She reports that "protesters at town hall meetings are increasingly railing against lawmakers for seeking to provide health care to illegal immigrants. . . the anger fomented by anti-health care reform groups has spilled over into nativist death threats. The issue of illegal immigrantion is now coming back into the consciousness of many opposed to health care reform and those who oppose any type of money and resources spent on illegal immigrant who seek health care."
But Eviatar's report does not stop there. "Last week outside President Obama's town hall meeting in New Hampshire, one protester shouted," Eviatar tells us, "'We don't need illegals,' adding, 'Send 'em back with a bullet in the head.'"
This left me speechless. This is beyond mere anger directed at the money and resources spent on the illegal immigrants when the times are tough. It is pure hatred, just unimaginable hatred. Can the protester actually be saying that the illegal aliens should be shot dead? Sent with a bullet in the head? Not only not receive medical attention, but they, all of them, men, women, children should be sent back dead, "with a bullet in the head"? Shot dead?
This is beyond repulsive, beyond any trace of humanity. This reminded me of an article that I read a long time ago when I was growing up in Germany. The article was about American white supremacy. Germans like to look at their own history through different lenses, so this article was not out of the ordinary. I don't quite remember if it was a print magazine or a news magazine. I do remember vividly, however, one particular detail of this article.
The reporter asked the white supremacist a simple question. Would he stop to help a black man on the road who had been hit by a car? Sure, the white supremacist said, just like I would help a dog.
This answer stuck with me for years.
The protester at the New Hampshire town hall meeting, and all those like him, have placed fellow humans below dogs. Repeat: these people have placed fellow human beings below dogs.
This is very, very sad.