Anti-Immigrant Leader Says Immigration merely ‘Skirmish in a Wider War’
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In 1989, the founder of the modern day anti-immigrant movement, John Tanton, told Otis L. Graham Jr. that “I have all along seen the immigration battle as really a skirmish in a wider war . . .” Since that time critics of Tanton have worried that his “wider war” would be one steeped in racism and white nationalism. Critics had reason to worry, particularly because of Tanton’s strong commitment to the false study of eugenics. When one cuts straight to the chase eugenics can be defined as the forced sterilization of poor and brown skinned people.
Critics should worry even more. In a recently surfaced memo, The Case for Passive Eugenics, Tanton argues for a softer, gentler eugenics movement because simply “Hitler’s reign in Nazi Germany did little to advance the discussion of eugenics among sensitive persons.” Tanton still serves on the board of his most influential organization – the Federation for American Immigration Reform.
Other items to surface in these newly uncovered Tanton memos include:
“I’m sure it will give you a new understanding of the Jewish outlook on life, which explains a large part of the Jewish opposition to immigration reform.” – John Tanton promoting an article written by anti-Semite Kevin McDonald of Occidental Quarterly a vicious anti-Semitic journal [Source: Letter to Mrs. C.S. May, December 10, 1998].
“You are saying a lot of things that need to be said, but I anticipate it will be very tough sledding” – John Tanton writing to Jared Taylor of the white supremacist group Council of Conservative Citizens concerning Taylor’s draft newsletter [Source: Letter to Jared Taylor, October 10, 1990].
“I’ve been a reader of your materials for some time, and hope that we can meet some day. Is there any chance that you could come up and join us?” – John Tanton inviting Wayne Lutton of the white supremacist group Council of Conservative Citizens to a FAIR event [Source: Letter to Wayne Lutton, June 10, 1991].
Over the last decade the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) has argued vehemently that the charges of racism leveled against it and its front groups by such respected institutions, ranging from the Southern Poverty Law Center to the Wall Street Journal, were all patently false. In December 2007, when the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) added FAIR to their list of hate groups, the anti-immigrant organization responded with a statement of its own. While choosing not to respond to the charges convincingly laid out by SPLC, they did state – while maintaining a straight face – that “FAIR is highly respected for the very reason that it has always argued that immigration policy should not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity or religion.”
FAIR must have left that respect at the door when it allowed radio talk show host Doug McIntyre without interruption at the Fall 2005 FAIR Director’s Meeting to rant the truth behind FAIR’s political agenda:
“The brown toxic cloud strangling Los Angeles never lifts and grows thicker with every immigrant added. One can’t help appreciate the streets of Paris will soon become the streets of LA. However, Paris’ streets erupted while LA’s shall sink into a Third World quagmire much like Bombay or Calcutta, India. When you import that much crime, illiteracy, multiple languages and disease-Americans pick up stakes and move away.”
Perhaps FAIR forgot to pass the memo on to staff member, Rosanna Pulido, before she decided to tell an audience attending a debate on immigration what she really thought about the American Catholic Church:
“What better way to fill your pews and fill your offering coffers then with inviting in and giving sanctuary to illegal aliens? . . . The Catholic Church is not Catholicism. It has nothing to do with Christianity or the Bible.” -Rosanna Pulido, FAIR Staffer, Chicago Public Radio, October 04, 2007)
While FAIR seems clearly offended by SPLC and the Wall Street Journal’s criticism, no one at FAIR seems remotely offended by current board member John Tanton’s outreach to white nationalists, the racist musings at its Director’s Meeting, or the anti-Catholic bashing of it staff. In fact when it comes to cleaning their own house, the Federation for American Immigration Reform seems to be unable, or more frighteningly, unwilling to do the same. However, one thing has now become absolutely clear; While the Federation for American Immigration Reform may be against racism, it clearly doesn’t have a problem associating with racists.
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3 Responses to “Anti-Immigrant Leader Says Immigration merely ‘Skirmish in a Wider War’”
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Tanton scares me to no end. He is by far the person most responsible for spreading hate and racism in America, while effectively masking it at “immigration reform”.
Tanton has a long history in the “anti-immigration” movement and has been nothing short of prolific in his attempt to keep America as a White Nation. For proof one needs to look no further than the organizations that he founded or co-founded which include; FAIR, Center for Immigration Studies (CIS), NumbersUSA, and Pro-English. Tanton has effectively positioned these groups as legitimate groups which study and conduct research on immigration, but in reality those groups nothing more than tools for Tanton and his followers to spread racism, hate and anti-immigration sentiment.
Since the 1970’s Tanton has been pulling the strings of the anti-immigration movement. That’s a very long time and he has been quite effective at lobbying Congress. Throughout all that time Tanton has always kept a cozy relationship with White Supremacist groups, whom he relies on to perform his dirty work.
Once again, Tanton, for me is one seriously scary White dude!
i agree with tony.
i also think that more people need to know about tanton, because they need to know how orchestrated this whole thing is. people think that the anti-immigrant movement is more grassroots than it is (in fact they try to make it seem more grassroots, but the money comes in from these national orgs to fund local intitiatives such as protect arizona now or prop 200. plus those initiatives are locally funded by business owners like rusty childress). i think a lot of white people are racist, but it’s really important that we see that they may not be as actively racist as it seems. without all that funding and lobbying, all this stuff would not be happening.
since this is the case, there’s more hope for change. i would not say however, that it’s not important to try to challenge the white working class especially to build solidarity with working class people of all races/ethnicities.
Thanks, Eric, for a really important article. This guy and his organizations are really dangerous, more so because they’re so underhanded about their large-scale organizing.
Much of his reasoning seems to go back to Garrett Hardin’s “Exploring new ethics for survival (1972),” a profoundly immoral book which gained status among the Zero Pop. Growth crowd in the 70s. Bad basis.