I would say that
like many other people in most ethnic groups, I like to be with my own
kind, so it would be accurate to say of me and many others that I'm a
separatist.- Virginia D. Abernethy National leader of Protect Arizona Now initiative
Stick to your own kind, Arizona. What "kind" is that,
exactly? Is Arizona's kind the Native American tribes that were here
when the Spanish arrived? Or maybe the Spanish themselves? Or the
Mexicans who came later? And what does sorting people by ethnicity have
to do with a ballot initiative that ostensibly aims to curb illegal
immigration? It's worth considering how this separation thing fits in.
Those with last names like - Hernandez, de Uriarte, Valdez - would be
separated out for special treatment when they sought services. Those
who share ancestral roots with Abernethy would not. That does nothing
to curb illegal immigration. But it does provide a good way to judge
this initiative. Protect Arizona Now enjoys public support based on
real and legitimate anger at the federal government's failure to deal
with illegal immigration. But a state initiative won't address that
failure. It will separate Arizonans. By ethnicity. That's wrong and
Arizona knows it. [more ]