A CALIFORNIA TRAGEDY

A DEAFENING SILENCE: Latino Elected Leaders and the LAPD Corruption Scandal

Latino federal, state, county and city elected officials are being unusually quiet concerning the horrendous Los Angeles Police Department scandal that has victimized thousands of Latinos. Why is this so? One would expect that in a city with the largest Mexican-American population second only to Mexico City there would be an immense uproar. Latinos are fond of criticizing the Los Angeles Times for not being responsive to our community, however, now the role has reversed and it seems that only the Times is courageously responding to the most grievous trampling of our human and civil rights.

We have not heard a "peep" from Lieutenant Governor Cruz Bustamante nor even from the Speaker of the State Assembly Antonio Villaraigaosa who is now a candidate for mayor of Los Angeles. Los Angeles County Supervisor Gloria Molina who is usually feisty in this matters has also been very quiet. The entire Los Angeles county Latino congressional delegation consisting of Xavier Becerra who is also running for mayor of Los Angeles and Diane Roybal-Allard, Grace Napolitano, and Marty Martinez, all who could demand a full federal civil rights investigation, are not saying a word. Not even the three Mexican American L.A. city councilmen have said much. We may understand why Councilman Mike Hernandez might choose to remain quiet, but how about the two newly elected councilmen, Alex Padilla and Nick Pacheco who have not had run-ins with the LAPD? We must remember that all these elected "politicos" ran and won under the banner of "proportionate political representation for La Raza" because we had little or no representation in government. Are we much better off or worse? It looks like the democratic system we have had so much faith in has been cruelly twisted against us. We can no longer scream that we lack political representation.

Is this unusual quietness due to fear? Is it due to a feeling of political hopelessness that leads to the belief that no matter what one says or does, the LAPD will always be corrupt? It is common knowledge here in L.A. that the LAPD keeps "dossiers" on the local politicians. Is this what they fear? The arrest and conviction of Councilman Mike Hernandez for the purchase and possession of cocaine was no coincidence. The court records show that he was investigated and "tailed" for months prior to the arrest by the LAPD.

This lack of leadership from our elected representatives is exactly what perpetuates the intolerable conditions in which we must live and why we continue to be victimized by law enforcement and the judicial system. Many of those we elect are either "compromised" or sell out to interests other than those of our community. Perhaps this situation is inherent in the political system we presently live under. Perhaps we should no longer depend on our elected representatives for leadership or have faith in a system that is no longer working to solve the pressing problems of our community.

In this new millennium, we need to start formulating a "Plan of Action" that will truly bring better living conditions for our community and we must start ignoring the "politicos" who repeatedly lie, scheme, and create the very conditions that we must struggle to survive in. These "politicos" are merely selling us out in return for their own personal benefit. There are no "Heroes of La Raza", and maybe there will never be, amomg these politicians." Meanwhile, La Raza in our oppressed barrios, in our dilipidated schools, and in the dungeons of the prison system awaits our "Martin Luther King", we await our Liberator. We hope we do not have to wait too long!

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LOS(T) ANGELES: The Shameful LAPD and LAUSD Corruption Scandals

California Proposition 21 Will Incarcerate More Latino Children

The Hypocrisy of U.S. Immigration Policy

Hector Carreon is the founder and publisher of La Voz de Aztlan and resides in Whittier, California. He was born in the Mexican state of Chihuahua and moved to Aztlan at the age of 5 years. Hector is a graduate in Civil Engineering from California State University at Long Beach where he was a founding member of the Society of Mexican-American Engineers and Scientists (MAES). He served honorably for two year as a Vietnam-era soldier in the U.S Army's 2nd Armored Division and is a graduate of the Mexican-American Legal Defense and Education Fund's Advanced Leadership Program. Hector Carreon can be contacted at La Voz de Aztlan