October 15, 2000
I am a past MEChA member and would like to know from your perspective how you rationalize the quote mentioned below is hatred towards whites. I see you use the quote a lot in your arguments but I believe it is I difference in World view. Your white privilege does not allow you to see that all the statements in the quote from "el plan" are factual. The brutal gringo invasion might be termed in other terms you can understand as "white settlers taking over the lands of what is now called north America" which is a true historical event. They did not just commit genocide but also changed people's culture, religion, goverment,way of life, etc.. So I do not understand how the below statement is white hatred, from what Chicana/o or indigenouse people have suffered. I guess I would of expected something worse but the truth is that the statement from "the plan" is simply a true historical occurance and a call for unity against oppresive behavior.
Sincerly,
Name Withheld
"In the spirit of a new people that is conscious not only of its proud historical heritage but also of the brutal "gringo" invasion of our territories, we, the Chicano inhabitants and civilizers of the northern land of Aztlan from whence came our forefathers, reclaiming the land of their birth and consecrating the determination of our people of the sun, declare that the call of our blood is our power, our responsibility, and our inevitable destiny.' is not hatred of Whites."
ps I hope this statement and answer can be posted in your site to give a differnt perspective in the debate and also to see your rational. I have not seen your site updated for a while.
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October 15, 2000
Dear Withheld
After receiving dozens of hateful email letters, most of which do not get posted, it is refreshing to receive your non-hostile email letter. Thank You.
To your question of why I use the quote:
'In the spirit of a new people that is conscious not only of its proud historical heritage but also of the brutal "gringo" invasion of our territories, we, the Chicano inhabitants and civilizers of the northern land of Aztlan from whence came our forefathers, reclaiming the land of their birth and consecrating the determination of our people of the sun, declare that the call of our blood is our power, our responsibility, and our inevitable destiny.'
My answer is this: In my opinion, the entire "El Plan de Aztlan" is filled with hate. But to spare the reader the chore of reading the entire manifesto, I use only the first paragraph to quickly make my point.
If you perused the "BACKGROUND THAT LED TO THIS SITE" page on the MayorNo Website, you would have seen my fabricated take on El Plan called "The Plan of STUSADE" (STudent Sons And Daughters of Europe). In creating the STUSADE constitution, I simply copied the MEChA "El Plan de Aztlan" manifesto, but reversed pejorative terms and rhetoric to reflect bigotry against the Brown Race just as the MEChA manifesto reflects bigotry against Anglos and Europeans.
Here is the first paragraph of "The Plan of STUSADE"...:
'In the spirit of a new people that is conscious not only of its proud historical heritage but also of the brutal "third world" invasion of our territories, we, The Student Sons And Daughters of Europe, the inhabitants and civilizers of the land our forefathers claimed and consecrating the determination of our people, declare that the call of our blood is our power, our responsibility, and our inevitable destiny.'
If you will say that the above paragraph is not racist, I will tell you that you are in disagreement with one reader who did not realize that she was reading the El Plan (with pejoratives switched) and said it looked like Hitler himself wrote it.
You might argue the El Plan reflects truth, while the Plan of STUSADE does not. But remember, the intentions of my Website was not to clarify history nor to get into a tit-for-tat contest of who did the most wrong to whom, as I'm not a historian nor does it make any difference to the objective of the MayorNo Website which group was "right" or which group was "wrong." My intentions were to show that MEChA is a racist, separatist, and divisive organization based on their constitution, manifestos, and public declarations -- and I believe I have succeeded in that. If you are saying that they are justified in their beliefs, I don't argue with that -- but they are nevertheless racists -- and no amount of history regardless of how cruel one group was to another and regardless of whose version of history you accept, justifies racism.
As to your statement "Your white privilege does not allow you to see that all the statements in the quote from 'el plan' are factual." is in itself racist or at the very least, you are stereotyping me. But for the sake of argument, if I cannot "feel your pain" because I am white, then MEChA shows its divisiveness and lack of tolerance towards other ethnic groups by choosing such antagonistic rhetoric that is clearly (to me) racist.
Remember that in America, it's not supposed to matter who your ancestors were -- millions of immigrants (including my parents) came to America to escape class and group tyranny. Diversity is our strength, but only if we are all united as one people. I am a Native American (because I was born in the U.S.) and my citizenship and the citizenship of anyone naturalized as a U.S. citizen, should have no more or less value than someone whose ancestor was indigenous -- wouldn't you agree?
MEChA is a racist and separatist organization that seeks its own Chicano piece of pie (Aztlan) and clearly reflects contempt for "our" country.
I hope this answers your questions. I will definitely post this exchange. If you would like, please feel free to take it another round. If you do respond, please address the issue (that Antonio Villaraigosa and MEChA are separatists and racists). I will not answer to opinions based on the different versions of history, as to what one group owes to another group.
Respectfully,
Hal Netkin
To see "El Plan de Aztlan" in its entirety, click here
To see "The Plan of STUSADE" in its entirety, click here
