Another Example of Disastrous GOP Hispanic Outreach

Former RNC Florida Hispanic Outreach director Pablo Pantoja has decided to become a Democrat. Pantoja left the Republican Party because he felt the GOP is racist. Pantoja also cites the controversial and factually dubious research by Jason Richwine.

From: Pablo Pantoja

Subject: From Republican to Democrat

Date: May 13, 2013 5:57:11 PM EDT

Friend,

Yes, I have changed my political affiliation to the Democratic Party.

It doesn’t take much to see the culture of intolerance surrounding the Republican Party today. I have wondered before about the seemingly harsh undertones about immigrants and others. Look no further; a well-known organization recently confirms the intolerance of that which seems different or strange to them.

Studies geared towards making – human beings – viewed as less because of their immigrant status to outright unacceptable claims, are at the center of the immigration debate. Without going too deep on everything surrounding immigration today, the more resounding example this past week was reported by several media outlets.

A researcher included as part of a past dissertation his theory that “the totality of the evidence suggests a genetic component to group differences in IQ.” The researcher reinforces these views by saying “No one knows whether Hispanics will ever reach IQ parity with whites, but the prediction that new Hispanic immigrants will have low-IQ children and grandchildren is difficult to argue against.”

Although the organization distanced themselves from those assertions, other immigration-related research is still padded with the same racist and eugenics-based innuendo. Some Republican leaders have blandly (if at all) denied and distanced themselves from this but it doesn’t take away from the culture within the ranks of intolerance. The pseudo-apologies appear to be a quick fix to deep-rooted issues in the Republican Party in hopes that it will soon pass and be forgotten.

The complete disregard of those who are in disadvantage is also palpable. We are not looking at an isolated incident of rhetoric or research. Others subscribe to motivating people to action by stating, “In California, a majority of all Hispanic births are illegitimate. That’s a lot of Democratic voters coming.” The discourse that moves the Republican Party is filled with this anti-immigrant movement and overall radicalization that is far removed from reality. Another quick example beyond the immigration debate happened during CPAC this year when a supporter shouted ““For giving him shelter and food for all those years?” while a moderator explained how Frederick Douglass had written a letter to his slave master saying that he forgave him for “all the things you did to me.” I think you get the idea.

When the political discourse resorts to intolerance and hate, we all lose in what makes America great and the progress made in society.

Although I was born an American citizen, I feel that my experience, and that of many from Puerto Rico, is intertwined with those who are referred to as illegal. My grandfather served in an all-Puerto Rican segregated Army unit, the 65th Infantry Regiment. He then helped, along my grandmother, shatter glass ceilings for Puerto Rican women raising my aunt to become the first Puerto Rican woman astronomer with a PhD in astrophysics (an IQ of a genius as far as I’m concerned). Puerto Ricans, as many other Americans still today have to face issues of discrimination in voting and civil rights.

Regardless of what political affiliation people choose, my respect for some remains. I don’t expect all Hispanics to do the same (although I would hope so) but I’m taking a stand against this culture of intolerance.

Meet Jason Richwine, White Nationalist At the Heritage Foundation

Jeb Bush and Hispanic Republicans are pushing back against the Heritage Foundation’s Jason Richwine. Richwine is a researcher at the bogus think tank. Richwine's Harvard dissertation made the outlandlish claim that Hispanics have lower IQs. Bush and the Hispanic Network sent out this press release.

WASHINGTON, DC – Members of the Hispanic Leadership Network’s (HLN) National Advisory Committee released the following statement regarding the inflammatory remarks on immigrants’ intelligence by the Heritage Foundation’s Jason Richwine. The HLN Advisory Committee signees are: Governor Jeb Bush, Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, U.S. Treasurer Rosario Marin, Mario Rodriguez, Massey Villarreal, Jovita Carranza and HLN's executive director, Jennifer S. Korn.

“The beliefs espoused by the Heritage Foundation’s Jason Richwine are ignorant and reflect a lack of understanding of our immigration system and the American immigrant experience. American Hispanics are not a community of low intelligence but rather one of entrepreneurship and upward mobility. This lack of understanding, from the author himself of Heritage’s immigration study, only further discredits their already controversial and flawed findings. This is particularly disappointing because of our respect for the Heritage Foundation and their traditions of high standards, rigorous work, and support for immigration reform. We look forward to the next Heritage study that excludes such obvious biases and flawed starting points.”

The Hispanic Leadership Network began its efforts in 2011 and strives to engage the Hispanic community on center-right issues that will restore opportunity and prosperity in America.

If you are wondering if Richwine is a racist then wonder no more. Richwine has written for the website AlternativeRight.com. The Southern Poverty Law Center has documented the website's history of racism.

At “Alternative Right,” Spencer’s senior contributing editors are Peter Brimelow and Paul Gottfried. Brimelow founded VDARE.com, an anti-immigrant website, and he has described “Alternative Right” as a project of the VDARE Foundation. Gottfried has been a contributor to “Taki’s Magazine” and has spoken at conferences of the white nationalist American Renaissance magazine, whose editor has written that black people are incapable of sustaining any kind of civilization. Gottfried gave a speech at the inaugural meeting of the H.L. Mencken Club in November 2008 titled, “The Decline and Rise of the Alternative Right.” Brimelow was the keynote speaker at that event, and Spencer the master of ceremonies. Spencer and Gottfried also appeared together last October on “The Political Cesspool,” a racist and anti-Semitic radio program.

One of the bloggers at “Alternative Right” is Richard Hoste, who recently wrote that “low-IQ Mexican immigration is the greatest threat to America.” He also wrote: “Schools should stop wasting time trying to close achievement gaps. And not only do whites have nothing to feel guilty about, they are the best thing to ever happen to blacks. Even ignoring race, humanity will not move forward through equality or by raising up the really stupid to the level of just plain stupid.” Finally, Hoste had this pithy observation: “While there’s more miscegenation [interracial sex] than in the past … we should be heartened that white teenage girls aren’t passing themselves around in black neighborhoods.”

On the AlternativeRight.com website made the claim that if Hispanic immigrants are allowed to become U.S. citizens then their children will become harden criminals.

An even more serious problem with Unz's analysis is his glossing over of the generational issue. U.S.-born Hispanics are much more likely to be incarcerated than foreign-born Hispanics. Though it may seem counter-intuitive, this is a finding that is well known to researchers in the field, and it implies that Hispanic crime will become more of a problem as time goes on, not less.

While neighborhoods with mostly first-generation Hispanics do not have a large crime problem, entrenched Hispanic communities are usually more dangerous. In many of Unz's most prominent examples of low-crime Hispanic communities -- Silicon Valley, the Jackson Heights section of Queens, even Los Angeles proper -- the adult Hispanic population is primarily immigrant.

Richwine makes the bizarre argument Hispanic crime is skyrocket the the better educated and more economically mobile they become.

Unz adds: "There actually does exist a connection between poverty and crime ... and ... there is every reason to expect this crime rate will drop further as Hispanics continue to move up the economic ladder." Wrong. Consider again what happens between the first and second generations. The children of Hispanic immigrants are much wealthier and better educated than their parents, but they also commit crimes at higher rates. The poverty-crime correlation here is negative, not positive.

The fact that the Heritage Foundation would hire Richwine says much about the credibility of their think tank.