-- There is a sound wall now along Highway 26 right on the Beaverton-Hillsboro border that I pass by every day. When it was first built I was saddened because I began to see how the concrete walls of my former hometown, L.A., came to be. You see, a new housing development was going in and, as it was right up against a freeway, and as freeways are astonishingly loud creatures, whoever it was that gave approval for the development required a sound wall. It's long, high and grey and goes only so far as the development does. After that, mercifully, it's back to open fields and trees with occasional "improvements," though I'm sure that will be put to an end, sooner rather than later.
About three months ago I noticed at the end of the wall brand new Mexican gang graffiti. Whoever was responsible for the wall had it painted over. It left an off-grey smudge on the wall, still ugly, but the gang statement was painted over.
Waste of time and effort, I thought, but, hey, this is all new to these Oregonians. No doubt they have many lessons coming their way.
About a week later, the same gang graffiti appeared in the same, exact location. A few days later, it was covered up again with another coat of off-color grey.
Then again.
And again.
And then again.
Last week, I noticed the gang graffiti again. I waited for the wall owner's response. To date, there has not been one.
Like water on stone until the stone becomes nothing more than brittle powder. Again and again and again and again.
-- There is an Albertson's by my house that I don't go to anymore. Why? Because it's across the border. Don't bother looking, you won't find it on any map, but this border is written in the hearts of my neighbors and colleagues. They won't call it the "border," of course, and they'll deny its existence if you press them on it (until you get a few drinks in them, at any rate), just like they'll deny the phrase "we're looking for a house in a good school district" doesn't mean what it clearly means.
But that doesn't mean the border isn't there.
One day, a few weeks ago, I was driving by and had, by chance, an urgent need to pick something up at the store. It was a pain to drive by a perfectly good store, so I pulled in against my better judgment.
I got out of the car and got one kid out. Then another. I was reaching for kid number three (the last kid) when up pulled next to me a souped-up Nissan. Five Mexican teen-agers got out. Long white t-shirts. Oversized jeans/pants. Gold ropes. Black baseball caps with my grandfather's beloved Dodger's logo on them (MLB approved their sale in black, to increase market share; yet another sell out by those privileged to lead). Alarm bells went off.
Lots of kids in my arms.
I go into the store. I get my thing. I come out. Car is gone, as are teenagers, as is my car's maker's logo, pried off my trunk.
Translation: This ain't your store no more, White-ass prick. And whatcha gonna do about it?
All store signs in Albertson's are now bilingual.
-- Dateline: Anytown, Oregon:
Talk to anyone who knows [Local High School] Assistant Principal [Latina Woman], and you'll hear the same words: She is an inspiring, dedicated role model and advocate. Since arriving in Anytown at age 15 with her father and six siblings, [Latina Woman] has achieved one distinction after another, most recently being selected to serve on the Anytown City Council.
* * *
The District Strategic Plan of 2000-2005 opened a new door for [Latina Woman] when the Office of Hispanic Outreach was created to better address the needs of the growing Hispanic population.
"The reason she was selected as Director was her strong connections with the community," says another of her mentors, Deputy Superintendent [Latino Man - completely a coincidence, you understand]. "Residing in the community, she has her fingers on the pulse. She knows the families, the businesses, and the agencies that work in the Latino community. She built alliances and relationships that have strengthened the District. It's through her effort that the Office of Hispanic Outreach has been recognized as a national model."
Same old story I saw in L.A. Race-conscious Latinos working the system and advocating for their people while European-Americans are so scared of their own shadow they don't even acknowledge they are a people.
-- My wife decides to take our children to the new local parks and recreation department public swimming pool. It's the "Aquatic Center." When she arrives, she is greeted in Spanish and told to pay $5 a head. As she's fishing for cash or a debit card, all these "Latino" families come piling in, waving pale yellow cards at the officials demanding my wife and children pay.
My wife asks what they are and are told that they are free passes given out to "disadvantaged youth."
-- Despite lavish local parks and recs facilities, a local private club, which offers the same exact parks and recreational facilities offered for vastly reduced prices by the local government parks and recs department, is doing booming business. It's got a steep entry fee, but we've found a lot of our friends and neighbors are members.
Care to guess why?
-- From the Anytown, Oregon Police Department web-site:
Goal :
To reduce the length of time graffiti is visible in Anytown by educating the public about proper removal. We will educate community groups about reducing repeat graffiti through prompt removal.
Strategies :
. Educate community about reducing the reoccurrences of graffiti in neighborhoods.
. Translate educational material in Spanish.
. In addition to ongoing removal, arrange for an annual city-wide graffiti removal.
. Engage youths in graffiti removal.
a building, fence, and other properties by engaging civilian volunteers to participate in the process of graffiti removal. Through community education, we will educate our citizens to first report the graffiti to police and then remove the graffiti within 72 hours
Historically, grafitti has been an ongoing problem in the City of Anytown. We know that graffiti or "tagging" seems to increase during the spring and summer months. The reasons for graffiti ranges from bored kids to gang-related behavior by "marking areas" with graffiti that identifies a particular gang.
No.
Historically, Anytown has not had an on-going problem with grafitti. It's all part of the re-write of our history. Everything has always been thus, so shut up about it and get to painting over this grafitti!
-- Dateline, City-Next-To-Anytown, Oregon:
It was the first ripple of gang-related activity in town in a number of years - and Neighboring School District, local law enforcement officials and county gang experts are determined to squelch it.
They're attacking the issue with a combination of community awareness - holding parent forums at local schools - and extra-vigilant policing.
One such meeting, called "Gangs in Our Community," drew 150 parents and community members to school Nov. 16 to hear from county gang experts.
Presenters included [Latino Name One], a juvenile counselor; [Latino Name Two] of the Anytown County Sheriffs Office and [Latino Name Three] of the county Interagency Gang Enforcement Team.
Presented in Spanish and translated into English, the information was aimed at helping the largely Latino crowd understand the "gang mentality" and learn ways to dissuade their teens from joining, said [Hapless White Guy Name], assistant superintendent.
"The most important thing for all of us is our children, and that's why we're here," [Hapless White Guy Name] told the audience of mostly-Latino parents.
"We want to hear more about how to keep our kids safe."
Well, the game's pretty much given up here in this little local news story, isn't it? How this little nugget of reality happened to slip by the censors is beyond me. Latino public administrators and Latino police officers at a public school lecturing Latino parents in Spanish about how their kids are overwhelmingly in Latino gangs, which are new to Neighboring Town and, well, you wouldn't exactly be shocked if I told you that this once sleepy town is now seeing an exodus of certain, tax-paying individuals of a certain hue, now, would you?
Coming up next are headlines like this: "Dwinding Tax Base Cited As Need For More Direct State Funding of Neighboring Town School District" and "Local Boy, 15, Shot Dead At Late-Night Party."
-- The ads in the bus stops and benches changed last month. They are now uniformly for Latino radio stations, in Spanish.
But we drive on, to our jobs and our families. We have bills to pay, after all. Two sets, actually. The first for the "public" officials and infrastructure described above and the second for the alternative "private" institutions we've fled to.
And no one has the simple courage to stand up and say simply "no."
No.
No to the Mexicanization of our people, our communities and our culture.
Because that would be wrong.
So, shut up and keep those checks rolling.
