Holiday Violence Against Mt. Kisco Latinos

The Journal News reports that four masked thugs assaulted two Latinos and attempted to rob a Latino business in Mt. Kisco over the Christmas holiday.

Mt. Kisco is an affluent town one hour north of mid-town Manhattan in upper Westchester County, New York. While an estimated 25% of the population is Latino, none of the town's elected or appointed officials is Latino.

While we don't yet have any information on the thugs, what we do know is that Mt. Kisco area Latinos are in the crosshairs of racists. Read some of the comments at the end of the article to glimpse what Latino immigrants in Lower Hudson area are up against.

Mt. Kisco police are 'investigating'. Of course, they have thus far failed to find any of the criminals responsible for the brutal slayings of 6 Latino immigrants over the past few years. Protecting immigrants and bringing anti-Latino criminals to justice just does not seem to be a priority for Mt. Kisco Police.

Photo: Fernando Mateo of Hispanics Across America and Westchester DA Janet DiFiore at a vigil for slain Latino immigrant Rene Perez.

The War on Latino Immigrants Escalates: Jose Osvaldo Sucuzhañay Slain in Bushwick

Another Latino has been murdered in the glacial moraine known as Long Island.

Jose Osvaldo Sucuzhañay and his brother Romel were savagely attacked early Monday morning by a gang wielding beer bottles and bats. Jose was pronounced brain dead yesterday. The attack occurred in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn (Southwestern Long Island).

As in the killing of Marcelo Lucero a month earlier in Patchogue, Long Island, and the earlier slaying of Luis Ramirez in Shenandoah, PA, the attackers were a hate-filled pack of thugs prowling the night in search of victims. In all three cases, the gangs zeroed in on Latino immigrants walking home.

Unlike the other murders, the attackers in Bushwick were Black and they escaped in an SUV. In addition to using anti-Latino slurs, the attackers used anti-gay slurs in the mistaken belief that the brothers were a gay couple.

The domestic war against Latinos escalates with Jose and the Sucuzhañay family as its latest victims. But while nativists focus like a laser beam in waging their ugly war, the larger community of decent Americans are asleep at the switch. The result is that it's literally open season on Latinos--especially on the most vulnerable working late hours and travelling on foot or bicycle.

Photo: Diego Sucuzhañay, brother of Jose, addressing the media

Related:
Attack on Ecuadorean Brothers Investigated as Hate Crime
Brooklyn victim of bias attack Jose Sucuzhanay taken off life support
Task force hunting Brooklyn thugs in hate attack on immigrant

Aljazeera on the Murder of Marcelo Lucero

Marcello Lucero - A Latino Immigrant Awakening?

I joined 1,000 or so of mourners at last night's outdoor vigil for Marcello Lucero in Patchogue, Long Island.

It was a diverse crowd, young and old, Latino and nonLatino. They came from the Latino precincts of the Patchogue area, as well as from communities across the length of Long Island, including Astoria, Jackson Heights, Sunset Park, Corona, Elmont, Hempstead, Long Beach, Glen Cove, Freeport, Amityville, Huntington, Brentwood, Central Islip, Southampton, Montauk. Some travelled from New Jersey and points further west.

The bulk of those assembled though were Latino immigrants -- most Ecuadorianos.

The vigil was held at the very site of Marcello's murder, on a street along side the Patchogue commuter rail station. It's the back and poorly lit side of the rail station, so one can easily see why the thugs would chose to do their evil work there.

Under a steady drizzle one mourner called 'tears from heaven', the vigil included prayers, chants, speeches and songs offered in Spanish, English and sometimes in both. Many in the audience held flickering candles. Many held home-made signs protesting Marcello's murder or demanding an end to hate. A lit shrine with a large photo of Marcello, religious artifacts, messages and flowers drew a wall of bereaved a hundred deep.

Especially touching was that a two other vigils were held simultaneously last night: One in Marcello's hometown in Ecuador and another in Nanuet, New York. The proceedings in Patchogue were heard by Marcello's mother via cellphone.

People speaking from the podium included a number of politicians:

- State Senator (and Majority Leader to be) Malcolm Smith of Queens who promised to use the full weight of the state to protect New York's immigrant communities.

- Patchogue Mayor Paul Pontieri who spoke about his family's own immigrant origins in a small town in Italy and how the death of Marcello has wounded the community he loves and has lived in all of his life.

- Assemblyman Phil Ramos condemned the murder of Marcello and the pattern of anti-Latino immigrant violence that has been a shameful part of Suffolk life. He spoke about his experience as a former Suffolk police officer in which he responded to several horrific acts of racist violence against Latino Immigrants.

There were labor leaders who rallied the crowd with chants of 'Justicia', 'Yes, We Can!' and 'Un Pueblo Unido No Puede Ser Vencido!'.

A number of Latin American nations sent their representatives, including Ecuador's Ambassador to the United Nations, embassy officials from Venezuela, El Salvador and others.

There were religious leaders including the Imam of Long Island's Muslim community who offered prayers and solidarity.

Marcello's younger brother spoke again about the need to stop the violence against immigrants who he described as good people, hardworking people.

Latino and immigrant leaders addressed the mourners, including Dr. Luis Valenzuela who called for Suffolk County politicians to stop bashing immigrants. Another noted that Lucero means 'bright star' in Spanish and that Marcello was shining a light towards a better place from his perch in heaven.

Finally, one very animated speaker--whose name and role I didn't get--opened his comments with 'good morning' even though it was night. It wasn't a mistake. His point was that Long Island's Latino community has been asleep for too long, reluctant to stand up for itself. But that last night's large turn out was a sign to him that the community has awakened.

Video: Newsday
Photos: Gerry Vazquez

From Velvet Revolution: Finally, An Elected President

Velvet Revolution: The New American Patriot

Barack Obama was overwhelmingly elected by citizens in all regions of the country. Unlike the past two elections where the results were contested in two states run by partisans who rigged the results, this election was won hands down by the person who ran the best campaign. This is not to say that there were not massive problems with voting systems in many states. But this election did not come down to one state or county controlled by corrupt officials.

Four years ago, VR was formed out of the chaos of the 2004 election. Since then, we and all of you have fought a long battle to ensure that our elections are fair, honest and transparent. We demanded accurate voting machines and paper ballots. In this election, both Florida and Ohio, now with paper ballots, went Blue and there is no one questioning that result.

Over the past several months, we have raised the specter of a Man in the Middle computer attack on the vote tabulators controlled by partisan evangelicals. We identified Michael Connell as the key GOP IT expert who created these nefarious networks. We took legal action against Connell in the form of a federal deposition. Karl Rove responded by threatening Connell to either take the fall or keep his mouth shut. Connell’s Bush/Cheney attorneys did everything possible to keep Connell from testifying.

Two weeks ago, Rove was confidently saying that John McCain could win ten battleground states to become President. McCain was confidently telling everyone that he would win with a surge in the wee hours of election night.

Well, last Friday, something important happened: Michael Connell was forced to appear before Solomon Oliver, a Clinton appointed Afro-American federal Judge in Cleveland. After Attorney Cliff Arnebeck accused Connell in open court of rigging elections for Karl Rove, the judge ordered Connell to submit to a sworn deposition 18 hours before the polls were to open. On Monday at noon, Connell was placed under oath and grilled about election fraud, Man in the Middle attacks, Trojan horse manipulations and threats from Rove.

And guess what happened? Connell suddenly changed his tune. Connell said that to his knowledge there would be no tabulation manipulations of Tuesday’s election. And something else, Karl Rove wrote on his blog late Monday that Obama would win by a landslide even in those states he had previously predicted McCain would win.

In short, at VR, with all the help from you, our affiliates, our supporters and others, we played a role in helping to make this presidential election more fair than the past two. Our education campaign, our paper ballot campaign, our whistleblower campaign and our legal strategies worked. That’s what democracy is all about.

Thank all of you for your confidence in our work, your dedication and your kind and generous support. We hope to continue to do our small part to make our government more accountable to everyone.

Eliot Spitzer: Bush Shielded Subprime Predators

Eliot Spitzer had a deep understanding of the corruption on Wall Street, and he wasn't afraid to take on corrupt fat cats and politicians. Early on he warned that predatory lenders were gauging the little guy, and if left unchallenged, their greed explode our financial system.

Spitzer--along with the country's attorneys general--sought permission to do what the Bush administration refused to do: prosecute mortgage industry lawbreakers. They were flatly denied.

Shortly before Spitzer's fall from grace, he penned a letter to the editor of the Washington Post which included this warning:

When history tells the story of the subprime lending crisis and recounts its devastating effects on the lives of so many innocent homeowners, the Bush administration will not be judged favorably. The tale is still unfolding, but when the dust settles, it will be judged as a willing accomplice to the lenders who went to any lengths in their quest for profits. So willing, in fact, that it used the power of the federal government in an unprecedented assault on state legislatures, as well as on state attorneys general and anyone else on the side of consumers.

It's clear that Bush and his cronies just don't care about average Americans. Think about it. The Bush regime not only didn't do their job but they actively worked to bar states from seeking to protect the people.

Now, the Bush regime proposes to bailout Wall Street and nothing for the subprime victims. A modified version of that bailout bill was just defeated -- ironically, by the Republicans egged on by the kings of chaos on rightwing radio. These racists blame the Wall Street meltdown on minority victims of subprime predator lenders.

Link: Predatory Lenders' Partner in Crime: How the Bush Administration Stopped the States From Stepping In to Help Consumers

Eliot's Mess: The $200 billion bail-out for predator banks and Spitzer charges intimately linked

Marcy Kaptur warns “there are domestic enemies to the Republic”

Rep. Marcy Kaptur's declares from the floor of the U.S. Congress that domestic enemies of the Republic are the ones pulling the strings in pushing through the unprecedented $700 billion bailout of Wall Street.

"My message to the American people don’t let Congress seal this deal. High financial crimes have been committed."

"The normal legislative process has been shelved. Only a few insiders are doing the dealing, sounds like insider trading to me. These criminals have so much political power than can shut down the normal legislative process of the highest law making body of this land."

"We are Constitutionally sworn to protect and defend this Republic against all enemies foreign and domestic. And my friends there are enemies."

"The people pushing this deal are the very ones who are responsible for the implosion on Wall Street. They were fraudulent then and they are fraudulent now."

Lots of Americans smell a rat in the rush to bailout of Wall Street -- and concerned folks are raising questions about the rescue plan and who's responsible for the financial mess.

Kaptur suggests that she knows who the people are and that they are criminal enemies of the nation. As an elected representative of the people and an official who has promised to protect the nation, it seems to me that Kaptur must let the people know what's really going on.

Related: Rep. Marcy Kaptur's New Rules for Wall Street

Rep. Marcy Kaptur's New Rules for Wall Street

U.S. Representive Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) skewers the Bush regime and Wall Street fat cats on their rush to bail out the greedy. In addition, Kaptur proposes a series of reforms focused on securing the finances of the people while prosecuting Wall Street criminals.

Her rallying cry - Real Reform Now or Nothing!

Dennis Kucinich: Profits Are Theirs; Losses Are Ours

Dear Friend,

The U.S. government has been turned into an engine that accelerates the wealth upwards into the hands of a few. The Wall Street bailout, the Iraq War, military spending, tax cuts to the rich, and a for-profit health care system are all about the acceleration of wealth upwards. And now, the American people are about to pay the price of the collapse of the $513 trillion Ponzi scheme of derivatives. Yes, that’s half a quadrillion dollars. Our first trillion dollar compression bandage will hardly stem the hemorrhaging of an unsustainable Ponzi scheme built on debt "de-leverages."

Does anyone seriously think that our public and private debts of some $45 trillion will be paid? That the administration's growth of the federal debt from $5.6 trillion to $9.8 trillion while borrowing another trillion dollars from Social Security has nothing to do with this? Does anyone not see that when we spend nearly $16,000 for every family of four in our society for the military each year that we are heading over the cliff?

This is a debt crisis, not a credit crisis. Just as FDR had to save capitalism after Wall Street excesses, we have to re-invigorate our economy with real - not imaginary - growth. It does not address the never-ending war on the middle class.

The same corporate interests that profited from the closing of U.S. factories, the movement of millions of jobs out of America, the off-shoring of profits, the out-sourcing of workers, the crushing of pension funds, the knocking down of wages, the cancellation of health care benefits, the sub-prime lending are now rushing to Washington to get money to protect themselves.

The double standard is stunning: their profits are their profits, but their losses are our losses.

This bailout will not bring real jobs back to America. It will not bring back jobs that make things. It does not rebuild our schools, streets, neighborhoods, parks or bridges. The major product of this financial economy is now debt. Industrial capitalism has been destroyed.

In the next few days I will push for a plan that includes equity for every American in any taxpayer investment in this so-called bail-out plan. Since the bailout will cost each and every American about $2,300, I have proposed the creation of a United States Mutual Trust Fund, which will take control of $700 billion in stock assets, convert those assets to shares, and distribute $2,300 worth of shares to new individual savings accounts in the name of each and every American.

I will also insist that all of the following issues be considered in whatever Congress passes:

1) Reinstatement of the provisions of Glass-Steagall, which forbade speculation

2) Re-regulation of the finance, insurance, and real estate industries

3) Accountability on the part of those who took the companies down:
a) resignations of management
b) givebacks of executive compensation packages
c) limitations on executive compensation
d) admission by CEO's of what went wrong and how, prior to any government bailout

4) Demands for transparencey
a) with respect to analyzing the transactions which took the companies down
b) with respect to Treasury's dealings with the companies pre and post-bailout

5) An equity position for the taxpayers
a) some form of ownership of assets

6) Some credible formula for evaluating the price of the assets that the government is buying.

7) A sunset clause on the legislation

8) Full public disclosure by members of Congress of assets held, with possible conflicts put in blind trust.

9) A ban on political campaign contributions from officers of corporations receiving bailouts

10) A requirement that 2008 cycle candidates return political contributions to officers and representatives of corporations receiving bailouts

11) And, most importantly, some mechanism for direct assistance to homeowners saddled with unreasonable or unmanageable mortgages, as well as protection for renters who have lived up to their obligation but fall victim to financial tragedy when the property they live in undergoes foreclosure.

These are just some thoughts on the run. You will hear more from me tomorrow.

Dennis J Kucinich
www.Kucinich.us
216-252-9000
877-933-6647

$23 Billion Iraq War Funds Lost or Stolen

A BBC investigation estimates that around $23bn may have been lost, stolen or just not properly accounted for in Iraq.

For the first time, the extent to which some private contractors have profited from the conflict and rebuilding has been researched by the BBC's Panorama using US and Iraqi government sources.

"It may...be the largest war profiteering in history."

A US gagging order is preventing discussion of the allegations.

The order applies to 70 court cases against some of the top US companies.

While George Bush remains in the White House, it is unlikely the gagging orders will be lifted.

To date, no major US contractor faces trial for fraud or mismanagement in Iraq.

More

Related:
Iraq Loses $Billions in U.S. Taxpayer Funds
Billions $ Lost In Iraq
Ex-White House Aide McClellan: Bush Lied About Iraq!
Iraq War Cost Update: 3,501 U.S. Soldiers Killed; up to 71,042 Iraqi Civilians killed; and $432.5 Billion Spent

The Other Side of Beauty: Puerto Rico in Crisis

City probe could ensnare Puerto Rico's governor

Drug plant closings leave Puerto Rico feeling sick

PR pageant officials probe pepper spray

Pets Massacred in Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico Governor Dithers While Murders Surge

Puerto Rico in shock over fake doctors

Velázquez Calls for Federal Investigation of HIV/AIDS Crisis in Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico's Mismanagement of AIDS Funding Threatens Lives

PR Education Department: An Oxymoron?

Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority Indicted for Environmental Crimes;
Will Pay $10 Million in Criminal and Civil Fines and Spend $1.7 Billion Improving Wastewater Treatment

The Daughters of Juarez: A True Story of Serial Murder South of the Border by Teresa Rodriguez

Univision journalist puzzles over deaths of 400 Mexican women (by Ana Veciana-Suarez, Miami Herald - 6.23.07)

For almost a decade, the faces and families of the murdered women have haunted Teresa Rodriguez.

The Emmy-winning Univision journalist went on to cover hundreds of other stories after her first trip to the Mexican border town of Juarez, scene of heinous crimes, but her thoughts -- and her interest -- always returned to those hundreds who were tortured, raped, their bodies abandoned in the desert.

''I couldn't get them out of my head,'' Rodriguez says. ``The story, the women, became part of my life. There was one moment that I realized I had become obsessed with it and also obsessed with the reality that I did not have all the answers.''

Audio: Teresa Rodriguez discusses her book ‘The Daughters of Juarez’ and her decade-long investigation of the murders of 400 young women in that Mexican border town

It is easy to understand that obsession if you read Rodriguez's chillingly graphic new book, The Daughters of Juarez: A True Story of Serial Murder South of the Border. About 400 girls and women have been viciously attacked and killed in this area of Mexico, and the authorities are no closer to solving the crimes than they were in 1993 when the murders began. Nonetheless, Rodriguez hopes her book will help foster change.

''I want this to serve as a catalyst. I want it to be a denuncia,'' an accusation, she says.

More

Chapter One: A Corpse in the Sand

Feds Watching Anti-Immigrant Terrorists

Feds watching anti-immigrant extremists (by Kevin Johnson, USA TODAY)

Carl D. Wynn Jr., who last fall posed as a U.S. border agent and wrongly suggested that a Little Rock construction company had hired illegal immigrants, has come to symbolize how the divisive immigration debate can progress from legal expressions of opposition to offensive action.

Wynn, also accused of attempting to sabotage the same company by planting tire-ripping spikes outside the business, has quickly come to represent a "troubling" development within the radical ranks of the anti-immigration movement, said Little Rock U.S. Attorney Tim Griffin, whose office won a guilty plea last month from the laborer.

Since 2000, the number of extremist groups has increased by 40%, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which closely tracks the groups' activities. In the past two years, the growth has been largely driven by the emergence of about 144 "nativist" groups that oppose immigration.

"When folks try to take law enforcement matters into their own hands, it creates a potentially dangerous situation," Griffin said. "Mr. Wynn's actions are troubling to us."

Charles Frahm, FBI deputy assistant director for counterterrorism, said there is increasing concern that the most radical elements of the anti-immigration wing may be "susceptible" to recruitment by white supremacists and other groups inclined toward violence.

More

Economy, crime push Puerto Ricans to Florida

Economy, crime push Puerto Ricans to Florida (by Vanessa Bauzá, So. Florida Sun-Sentinel - 5.13.07)

Nelson Santiago grew up in the Bronx but returned to Puerto Rico every summer to see relatives. Eager to reconnect with his roots, he moved to the island six years ago. But his enthusiasm didn't last.

Frustrated with the island's stagnant economy and high crime rate, Santiago moved to Miramar in February, joining other Puerto Ricans who have made Florida their top destination.

"It just made sense to start a family outside of Puerto Rico," said Santiago, 32, a marketing executive who is engaged to be married in August. "Because of the government losing money, because of the crime rate being absolutely horrendous ... I feel as if I was forced out of Puerto Rico."

Santiago is not alone. The island's economic recession and weak prospects for recovery are fueling migration to Florida, experts say.

More

The Caribbean Has The Highest Crime Rate in the World

According to a new report by the World Bank and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Crime, Violence and Development : Trends, costs and Policy Options in the Caribbean, murder rates in the Caribbean are higher than in any other region of the world, and assault rates—including rape--are significantly above the world average.

While the report focuses on the crime problems of the sovereign nations of the Caribbean, it’s clear from these U.S. data that Puerto Rico is no exception. The murder rate in that U.S. possession was 20 murders per 100,000 people for 2006--and this year that rate has skyrocketed with 46 murders in just the first 15 days of the year.

The report concludes that one of the results of the extreme levels of crime is the stunting of social and economic development.

Puerto Rico Governor Dithers While Murders Surge

One of the saddest moments of recent times was witnessing the utter incompetence of Governor Katherine Blanco's response to the devastation of Hurricane Katrina.

Watching her during press conferences and interviews you could see that she was shell shocked. She simply didn't have mental focus or courage to lead in Louisiana's time of need.

(BTW: Ray Nagin didn't have it either but unlike Katherine Blanco, he doesn't have the good sense to step down.)

While I don't have the benefit of watching Puerto Rico Governor Acevedo Vila, it appears to me that he too is immobilized in the midst of his island's man-made disaster: escalating murders.

Puerto Rico's murder rate was already sky high. Last year, there were 20 slayings per 100,000 residents, or 2.8 times the U.S. national rate (6.9) and 3 times New York City's rate (6.6).

And things are getting much, much worse.

In the first 15 days of 2007, island authorities report 46 murders in Puerto Rico, or double the number of killings during the same period last year.

And what is Governor Blanco--I mean Governor Vila--doing about it? Well, the AP reports that he's thinking may he will and may be he won't call in the national guard. Shouldn't the guard and every available police officer (including all of the desk officers) have already been deployed? I mean, it is Puerto Rico's single biggest challenge of potentially catastrophic proportion if it is not addressed immediately and effectively.

It's like having a field full of idle buses and while people are literally drowning in surging waters. Haven't we seen this picture before?

Also, are Puerto Rico's governors, politicians and police afraid of the criminals? This is a reality in many places and maybe that's the case in Puerto Rico. The authorities pretend to be cracking down on the drug trade, but they'll only go so far. However, even more tragically, in some instances the authorities are actually profiting from the illicit activity.

What accounts for Governor Vila's inaction? I don't know. What's clear is that he (as was the case with lightly talented Sila Calderon) appears clueless on ways to impose the rule of law on this island. Of course, Puerto Rico should've known what they were getting when they chose Vila as governor after presiding as mayor over San Juan's catastrophic rise in crime.

Unfortunately, too many Puerto Ricans have also come to believe that politics is just a game and that it really doesn't matter who wins elections. The game is less on civic progress and more on which group gets to dole out gobernment jobs and contracts. But as we've seen in New York City's turnaround, the quality and courage of real individual leaders makes all the difference in the world.

Having proven incapable of providing for the basic public safety needs of residents, Puerto Rico appears resigned to see a further erosion in its tourist trade, and a continuing emigration of its more talented residents.

Puerto Rico: Paradise lost.