Child Killer Represented National Anti-Immigrant Group

June 15, 2009 by Eric Ward
Filed under: Immigration 
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Brisenia Flores was too young to die. At nine years-old her life was cut short by bullets fired at the hands of anti-immigrant activists—individuals who had been instructed by a larger movement that the United States was being invaded. For years alleged pundits like Glenn Beck and Michelle Malkin have sold this racial fantasy to the American public and now a nine-year old girl has paid the ultimate price.

For Shawna Forde (41), Jason Bush (34), and Albert Gaxiola (42) Brisenia was not just a young child with her whole life ahead of her, instead she and her family were forced against their will into a world where they became part of an alleged “foreign army” whose lives held no worth.

For nearly a decade we Americans have allowed the anti-immigrant movement to live in their own fantasy world and we allowed it to happen. We turned a blind eye when they played G.I. Joe in the dessert. We rolled our eyes and grab the remote when CNN allowed Lou Dobbs to spew out xenophobia nightly in order to sell a few commercials. We scratch our heads and turn the page when we learn that another national anti-immigrant leader was allowed to give official testimony in front of Congress.

While the minutemen are working overtime to distance themselves from this horrible crime, it appears that one of the murderers of Brisenia, Shawna Forde, was a representative of the controversial anti-immigrant organization the Federation for American Immigration Reform. Los Angeles based worker compensation and immigrant rights activist Tony Herrera surfaced a video available on YouTube.

The video taken in Yakima, Washington on November 14, 2006 shows Shawna Forde being introduced as a representative of FAIR. Throughout the video FAIR is flashed on the screen along with Fordes other organization the Minutemen American Defense (MAD).

Forde would not be the first person associated to FAIR with suspect behavior. During a town hall meeting in Tennessee that took place on April 27, 2006 FAIR Midwest Coordinator Susan Tully chuckled at the idea of Nashville radio talk show host Phil Valentine who advised border patrol agents to shoot undocumented immigrants. FAIR staffer Rosanna Pulido is well-known for both her anti-Catholic and anti-Muslim statements.

The Federation for American Immigration Reform has a documented history of working with individuals with ties to political extremists. Current board member and founder John Tanton has a history of associating with individuals involved in the white supremacists movement, former Western Regional Coordinator Rick Oltman was listed as a member of the white nationalist Council of Conservative Citizens while employed by FAIR.

It’s time for those associated with John Tanton and FAIR to tell the truth. More importantly it’s time for the American public to start demanding that the media and political leaders stop treating the contemporary anti-immigrant movement as if they are part of the mainstream.

The Brisenia Flores’ of the world deserve better.

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