Anarchist hoodlums enable bigots
Most people here recognize how despicable and dangerous the ultra-right-wing, white supremacist, neo-Nazi movement is.
Most here who demonstrate against this country’s ugly underbelly can do so peacefully — and effectively. Unfortunately, there’s a small subset of opponents with a penchant for violence that plays right into the hands of the nationalist extremists. Dressed in black with masks covering their faces, they call themselves “antifa,” or anti-fascists.
They'll only fuel the bigotry, for the news will continue to revolve around the confrontations. The time has come for all of us to denounce the antifa tactics. They only serve to hurt the cause of fighting bigotry.
Make no mistake. We understand why people are angry. Take to the streets. Voice your anger. Show the world that Americans abhor racism and religious intolerance. But do so peacefully. Avoid direct confrontations. Violence is not the answer.
Consider what happened in Berkeley on Sunday. A small group of right-wing protesters showed up at a park. Thousands of counterdemonstrators showed up a few blocks away.
The story could have been the massive show of opposition to bigotry. Instead, the counter demonstrators moved toward the park and, predictably, the hundred or so black-clad antifa turned to violence.
The right-wing protesters got what they wanted, a confrontation that maximizes publicity. For the left, there are lessons to be learned. They must denounce and separate themselves from the anarchists. If they don’t, their message of tolerance will continue to be lost. if funding for a border wall isn’t included in the spending package that Congress must approve by Sept. 30. Trump’s threat would mean the federal aid spigot for Houston could be turned off in the middle of the recovery effort.
Trump feels so strongly about his immigration crackdown that, just as Hurricane Harvey was making landfall last Friday, he pardoned former Maricopa County, Ariz., Sheriff Joe Arpaio. Arpaio gained national infamy by defying federal court orders and rounding up Latinos simply because they looked like they might be undocumented migrants.
Houston has the thirdlargest population of undocumented immigrants in the country. Go to any construction site in Houston, and the language being spoken will be Spanish first and English second. The kinds of labor Houstonians will most need over the next few months will be roofers and drywall removal and installation workers.
Houston is where Trump’s Make America Great Again boasts slam up against hard economic reality. He can choose between an immigration crackdown or a more rapid recovery. But he can’t have both.