There have been several "letters to the editor" and a guest column in the New Mexican, which have tried to paint the participants of the T.E.A. Party as ignorant, uneducated, racists, all-white, rich Republicans - and so on and so on. You know the talking points - it was Bush's fault, why didn't we protest during the last Administration, it's all about Obama's race, etc.
One woman - a teacher - who attended the rally in opposition to what we were doing was quoted as saying that she was there to see all the stupid people. What an intelligent comment! (NOT!) Another letter to the editor commented that their side won the election and majority rules - deal with it. Another woman complained that her son was not allowed his right to free speech since he was asked to leave .... was this one of the young boys holding up the "Nazi Youth for Low Taxes" signs? What was their purpose??? They certainly were not part of the Santa Fe T.E.A. Party. The 'other side' frequently uses derrogatory labels to describe the people who attend the T.E.A. Party (racist, ignorant, etc. etc.). How many of us had even heard the term "teabagger" before the mainstream media (including those who have been considered leading journalists)started using it as if it were as non-offensive as 'demonstrator'. Yet, people all over the world now know that this is a reference to perversion that I don't want to describe in this blog. Yet ... our critics get away with using such a term.
Self-described members of the NAACP claim racism and harrasment - really? Sounds like a made-up story to me - read below what Steve Terrell said about hatred and racism (he didn't see it!).
Readers can make their own decision about who the participants at the tea party are, what they stand for, and what has really gone on at our rallies. People can read our Mission Statement. They can look at the dozens of photos and videos posted on the internet. They can even read what New Mexican journalist, Steve Terrell, has written and blogged about.
Roundhouse Roundup - by Steve Terrell / www.santafenewmexican.com
"Apparently April 15 is destined to be a national day of protest over taxes -- at least until the day they abolish the IRS, and you know what Buddy Holly would say about that.
Maybe it's just because it's Santa Fe and so many people know each other, but I really don't sense the intense anger here that I've read about and seen on TV coverage of the Tea Party elsewhere. Yes there's serious disagreement with the Obama administration and other Democrats in power. And yes, there's lots of passion expressed.
But hateful? I didn't hear it. Racist? I didn't see it.
Nobody spit on or cursed state Rep. Brian Egolf -- a Santa Fe Democrat -- as he walked through the crowd. Nobody screamed at him when they were discussing his position on Voter ID bills. The worst thing said there was "you're so full of bluster!" by a woman who stalked off toward the end of that conversation.
To the right is a photo of Egolf meeting for the first time Brigitte Russell, his Republican opponent in November.
At the risk of sounding too namby-pamby in these divisive times, I actually think it's healthy in these divisive times for people to go down to the Plaza on a sunny day and talk about politics, protest things you don't like. I also think it's healthy for politicians to hear directly from folks who disagree with them and have good, civil exchanges of ideas."
We appreciate Steve Terrell's observations and fair reporting. We hope that the editors of the New Mexican will be more careful when choosing which letters or guest columns to print. Opinions are fine ... but they should be something more than fantasy.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
0 comments:
Post a Comment