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Felix Arroyo: Anti-immigrant tide helped do me in
By adamg on Wed, 01/16/2008 - 11:09am
New England Ethnic Newz interviews the former Boston City Councilor on Boston politics, ethnic politics, his past and future and the last election - which he says he lost in part because of immigrant haters, not because he was in love and disorganized and ran the world's lowest-key campaign in an election that the local dailies pretty much completely ignored:
The fact that you were not re-elected, could that be part of an overall anti-immigrant sentiment?
Arroyo: The anti-immigrant factor is definitely one reason, in particular because I assumed a leading role in the struggle for immigrant rights. ...
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Comments
Felix is an immigrant from
Felix is an immigrant from Puerto Rico? Like Mitt Romney was an immigrant from Michigan?
I don't think he was saying that
I think he was saying he's a leader in the pro-immigrant movement and that's what did him in.
I also think that's a stupid thing to say. He didn't lose because of the issue anymore than he won because of it two years earlier. He lost because he forgot to organize a real campaign.
Adam "A Puerto Rican
Adam
"A Puerto Rican immigrant, Arroyo was..."
"What were your impressions of Boston when you first immigrated to that city?"
The first time, the writer is speaking. The second time, the writer asks the question, and Felix answers without correcting the wording. The writer obviously thinks of Puerto Ricans as immigrants, and Felix went along. If you or I called Felix an immigrant, we'd get an earful. This is a case of a intellectually lazy person confounds minority with immigrant, or hispanic/latino with immigrant.
Then again, maybe M.Thang - the writer - doesn't know that Puerto Rico is part of the United States.
I'm betting it's the writer
And Arroyo was just going along with him/her. I'm willing to give Arroyo the benefit of the doubt - he never struck me as a dishonest type (and, yes, I voted for him the past two elections).
Perception vs. Reality
Go over to just about any given comment thread on the Herald, particularly the ones where there is a story about a big fire making poor people homeless.
Drop in a comment about "deporting them all to Puerto Rico" and you might be surprised at how many of the "anti-immigrant" crowd that fester in that paper's readership will actually agree with you.
It makes no difference that Arroyo is a native-born US Citizen. He has reached out to the immigrant community and those who don't understand some basic geography hear an accent and hear no more.
I am a Puerto Rican
"im·mi·grant
–noun
1. a person who migrates to another country, usually for permanent residence."
I am a Puerto Rican man, who now lives in Boston, I would consider myself an immigrant. Just because the United States happens to own my country doesn't mean it is not a country (or territory/colony). I would suggest any Puerto Rican that believes in independence for Puerto Rico from the colonialism of the United States, as I know Arroyo does, that would like to consider themselves an Immigrant, should be able to do just that.
Since when have we people in the business of not allowing people to label their own selves? How fascist of you.
I do believe and know that Arroyo's support of immigrant rights did cost him some votes and was ONE of the many factors that cost him this past election. Turn out was another, the illegal hijacking of democracy by eliminating the primary or as Councilor Tobin called it the "Murphy protection act" was a factor. The lack of money and energy from the 60 yr old Arroyo played a part. Arroyo missing the City Council meetings that he missed played a roll. Shit even the rain on election day played a roll. There where many factors and to say that an anti-immigrant tide, which you'd have to admit is such a polarizing issue did NOT play a role would be down right naive.
Fascist?
Gee, would it be fascist to correct your grammar as well as your word usage? Or is comma misuse a precious part of your self-concept too?
Sorry, but Puerto Rico is not in fact a country. The term "country" is a legal distinction, not a moral or a cultural distinction. Feel free to call Puerto Rico a nation, but it isn't a country. Not only is Puerto Rico not a country, but most people there don't even want it to be a country, as three referendums have determined. And therefore you are not an immigrant. You're an internal migrant, same as if you came from Texas.
Sure, you may call yourself whatever you want - you could call yourself a banana or a tree if you want to - but it wouldn't mean much besides a failure to accept reality.
And Arroyo? He lost for a simple reason - he didn't want to be reelected enough. He was busy chasing girls, while his competitors were chasing his seat.
English is my second language
and all you can do is look at my grammar great job. Im sure deep down you want me to go back to where I came from. Did you vote for Arroyo? No I didn't think so you probably voted an all Irish slate just be happy he lost and call it a day. You racist can't ever be happy enough you just want to keep it going.
Arroyo was chasing girls? He got divorced last year last I checked so did Councilor Murphy however Arroyos divorce making the news and Murphy's not smells of racism of course you wouldn't understand you fascist.
Just because you did a little google search on our vote in Puerto Rico doesn't mean you understand the legality of the referendum. Puerto Rico is a colony, point blank call it what you will I will call it a Country. Again just because you label Arroyo or any other person for that matter doesn't make you right. I much prefer people label themselves. However I will label you a facist, racist and a prick, and just because I do doesn't make me right, does it?
now that Im done... please correct my mistakes online that would be real nice of you... prick
Project much?
I voted for Arroyo. Doesn't mean I think he's perfect. You might want to take some classes in dealing with your anger.
So what?
I bet your Spanish sucks too. It's not a language learning thing; it's just a lazy thing. Commas are used pretty much the same in Spanish as they are in English. Es que eres muy perezoso, chamaco.
When I say Arroyo was distracted by chasing skirts, I'm just repeating what he said himself. Look in the paper and you'll see Arroyo being up front about it.
So maybe all those people who didn't vote for him went to his picnic instead. I don't think his divorce itself distracted him much -- the divorce was just a consequence of him being distracted from his marriage by AMORRR - the same thing that distracted him from his job.
This has nothing to do with racism or immigration. Nobody really gives a carajo whether our councilors are named Arroyo instead of Consalvo or Yoon or Murphy, as long as they show up for work. And because Puerto Rico is not and has never been a country, neither you nor Arroyo is an immigrant. You can call Felix the victim of racism, and call Puerto Rico a country, but that won't make much of a difference to the truth. You're just being as lazy in your thought as you are in your grammar.