Another Arizona Republican comes out of the Racist Closet

First, there was (now former) Republican Legislative District One Representative David Stringers racist comments on not enough White Kids to go around in schools and African Americans not “blending in.”

Then, there is Congressional District Four Representative Republican Paul Gosar who has demonstrated a fondness for subscribing to known racist sites on Twitter.

Last week, another Arizona Republican came out of the Racist Closet.

Arizona State Legislative District Six Senator Sylvia Allen, commenting at a Republican-sponsored event, stated that the United States IS “going to look like South American countries very quickly,”

First reported by the Phoenix New Times, the Senator voiced concerns that immigrants from south of the border would be harder to “assimilate” because they:

  • “Are arriving at a rate that does not allow them to learn the principles of our country.”
  • Are out reproducing the white population. She reportedly stated that “The median age of a white woman is 43. The median age of a Hispanic woman is 27,” Allen said. “We are not reproducing ourselves, the birthrates. But here’s what I see is the issue. It’s because of immigration.”

Senator Allen also criticized Democratic Legislative District 29 State Senator Martin Quezada for not supporting assimilation by the new immigrants to the culture of the United States.

Legislative District 29 State Senator Martin Quezada

Responding to Senator Allen’s comments, Senator Quezada told the Phoenix New Times that he preferred acculturation to “forced assimilation” stating:

“Some of our families were able to pass on aspects of our culture like language. Others were beaten in school for speaking native or indigenous languages.”

Over the weekend, Senator Allen, via Facebook apologized for how her comments were being interpreted, saying she believes in legal immigration (citing her families hosting of a family from Laos,) and her remarks towards immigrants from South America were due to:

“The concern that some of these countries are socialist and that we must preserve our Constitutional Republic form of government and that we have not taught the next generation the difference.”

So, in Senator Allen’s views, it is now a socialist-communist infiltration of the country we have to worry about from immigrants on the southern side of the border.

Her views appear to be so 1950s.

Why does she not say that about Canadians that immigrate to this country? Their policies are more socialistic than those espoused in the United States.

Hopefully, this is not a question about who has a lighter skin tone.

What makes Senator Allen’s comments scarier is that she is the Chairperson of the Arizona State Senate Education Committee.

In a statement condemning Senator Allen’s comments, Arizona Democratic Party (ADP) Executive Director Herschel Fink  stated:

“Allen’s remarks are vile and harmful to the children and families that make up our state. The diversity of Arizona and our country is our strength. These remarks come as no surprise following the remarks made by former Rep. David Stringer. It’s clear the Republican party stands for racism and xenophobia,”

Colonel Felicia French, a House Candidate who just barely lost a chance to serve in the 2018 elections and who will be running against Allen again in 2020, noted on her Facebook page while commending the current firefighting efforts in Northern Arizona that

“…We currently have a state legislator making adversarial remarks that attempt to divide our communities…”

Being the son of a mother who legally immigrated to the United States from Italy in the 1950s, Senator Quezada’s point that immigrants can preserve their ethnic culture while also assimilating into the American one and still being patriotic law-abiding productive citizens has merit.

What would solve the issue of immigration is simple: Comprehensive Immigration Reform that:

  • Secures ALL our borders (North, South, and our coastlines) with appropriate manpower and modern technology that prevents all attempts at illegal immigration.
  • Provides more resources like judges to assist in processing immigration and asylum requests.
  • Provides a pathway for citizenship for DACA recipients and other otherwise law-abiding illegal immigrants who have laid down roots in their communities. Those illegal immigrants that have stayed in this country for years and have been found to have committed crimes should, after all, forms of due process have been exhausted, should be deported.
  • Expands opportunities for legal immigration.

Unfortunately, Republicans who scream the loudest about how unsecure our borders (at least the Southern one) are, are themselves the ones who have twice thwarted meaningful attempts to reform the system in both the Bush II and Obama Administrations.

Senator Allen’s comments have no place in today’s civil discourse. They are the comments of a time that despite the 2016 Popular Vote Loser-KKK endorsed candidate in the White House best efforts, are not what the great majority of Americans endorse.

For the children of Arizona, she should not be allowed to influence education policy as the Senate Education Chairperson.

She should resign that position and the voters can decide if they want to retain her services in 2020 or support someone who is not as discriminating.

 

Featured Photo from Payson Roundup

8 thoughts on “Another Arizona Republican comes out of the Racist Closet”

  1. I mean, the idea that immigrants are arriving in sufficient numbers that there is not the possibility of being assimilated is not novel or off the wall…

    • You mean like when the Europeans came here and murdered most of the Native Americans?

      Why couldn’t the English and French and Spanish just learn the ways of the Americans that were already here?

      You make a great point, Jack, just not the point you wanted. It’s also factually inaccurate, and a lot racist.

  2. Besides being a racist statement, Sylvia Allen is not factually correct. I recently analyzed birth data in Arizona. the number of births went down by more that 25% between 2007-2017, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services. The number of live births to Latinas went down the most– 30%.

  3. Sylvia Allen wants to make church attendance mandatory, because Sylvia Allen hates the US Constitution and America.

    Sylvia Allen tried to outlaw lie detector tests after her son in law got pervy’ with some prison ladies and he failed his polygraph test. That’s not corrupt at all!

    Sylvia Allen says that confessed rapist, orange hued racist, billionaire who won’t show his taxes, genius who won’t show his grades, Manhattan playboy who has to pay for sex (spank me Stormy, widdo’ Donnie been bad!), and brave draft dodger Don Trump is a “breath of fresh air”.

    Sylvia Allen needs to change her air filters.

    Sylvia Allen says the earth is 6,000 years old, and oddly, George Washington Academy, the charter school (aka scam) she owns got an F from the AZ Dept of Education. Strange.

    But they do say the Pledge of Allegiance twice a day at GWA, the pledge that was written by minister Francis Bellamy, a christian socialist, who believed Capitalism was idolatry and Jesus was a socialist. He hated racism and was pretty much the Bernie Sanders of his time.

    Don’t tell Sylvia Allen that last part about the Pledge, she clearly has enough problems.

    Seriously Arizona, such nice weather most of the time, such beautiful deserts and mountains, and always a national joke thanks to Allen, “Show Us Your Papers” Kavanagh, cryin’ John Huppenthal, Joe “Where’s the Camera” Arpaio, ChemTrail Kelli, “Hey Honey Make My Babies” Trent Franks, Andrew “Birther” Thomas, Jan “Had Did” Brewer, that horny Tom Horne guy crashing cars into things…

    Stop electing creeps.

  4. Kathy Hoffman should not have to work with a bigot. Senator Allen belongs nowhere near any children or policies concerning same. There already exists a petition asking her to step down from the committee, Victoria Steele is promoting it.

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