One wonders on this bright, clear morning...
Is it the intense heat of the desert that makes Jan Brewer and her
colleagues that damn crazy? Because the path that she and her
fellow state government members have taken reeks of utter madness.
Madness, you see is the only word I can conjure up in my mind over
and over again to describe the events of the past couple of weeks. And
Arizona is a desert state. But what sets it apart from say, New Mexico
and Nevada is that Arizona now has a governor who has signed two
bills into law that are inherently unconstitutional and smack of scornful
bigotry. SB 1070 and the new bill to eradicate ethnic studies from
schools in the state harken back to those same policies you'd find in
old Rhodesia and South Africa pre-1990's. Should we be expecting
a bill that will re-create Sun City next for birthers to reminisce about
the good old days with Pat Boone and Harvey Wallbangers?
Should we be that surprised at the Arizona government? This is after
all, the same state that refused to recognize Martin Luther King day
for YEARS until forced to concede because they wanted a Super Bowl.
Sheriff Joe Arpaio, a modern day Bull Connor who places his inmates
in pink scrub jumpsuits and outdoor tents, has glad-handed Neo-Nazis
and has been a staunch supporter of SB 1070. Arizona is the throne
seat of conservative politics, being the home state of the late Barry
Goldwater, whose views have left a legacy in Ronald Reagan and
Richard Nixon. And how do you think those two have affected the
United States and its citizens? And let's not forget that it's the home
state of everyone's 'Maverick' who flip flops more than a wrestler in
the WWE, John McCain. No, we shouldn't be too surprised but
I think we also can't be so appalled that we don't act as Americans
and object, protest and smack down Jan Brewer and her state's moves
towards bigotry.
The best bet to make Arizona give up this racist stance is to boycott.
Boycott EVERYTHING. A projection states that at the current rate of
businesses planning to not do business with Arizona, the state will
lose 90 million dollars over the next five years. Call it a happy
coincidence, but they even stand to lose their hockey team, the
Phoenix Coyotes. Even better is the fact that the city that LOST the
team in the first place, Winnipeg,Canada is making a strong push
to get it back. Put an insane amount of pressure on Bud Selig and
Major League Baseball to move their All Star Game from Phoenix
this summer or at least compel all players of Latino descent to bow
out of the weekend's festivities. And most importantly, support the
activists and groups who are fighting these bills there in any way
possible. It worked in 1993. It can happen again. If they won't
listen to the people, they'll pay attention to the growing red in
their ledgers and lint in their pockets. These laws piss on what it
means to be an American in a misguided, politically inept way.
In a time where we need to celebrate our diversity and how strong
it makes us, Jan Brewer and her cronies have made us look as
cheap and tawdry as a 'Jersey Shore' cast member. We need to
give them the biggest case of heatstroke the world has ever seen.