Arizona's 'Salt of the Earth' Moment': New America Media

[Dorinda Moreno]

On Fri, Apr 27, 2012 at 5:47 AM, Roberto Rodriguez <xco...@gmail.com> wrote:

Arizona's 'Salt of the Earth' Moment'

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New America Media, Commentary, Roberto Dr. Cintli Rodriguez, Posted: Apr 27, 2012

Editor’s Note: While the U.S. Supreme Court this week heard arguments over Arizona’s immigration law SB 1070, the fallout of another controversial law – the state’s ban on ethnic studies – is being felt across classrooms and communities in Tucson. If the matter is not resolved, the ethnic studies ban could be the next Arizona law to make it to the Supreme Court, writes commentator Roberto Dr. Cintli Rodriguez.

During the miners’ strike in Grants County, New Mexico in 1951, depicted in the 1954 epic film Salt of the Earth, the striking miners and their families were forced to endure extreme hardship as they struck the Empire Zinc Co. for some 15 months. In Tucson, Ariz., teachers from the recently dismantled Mexican American Studies (MAS) department are fast approaching a similar scenario. This, as the state and nation are seemingly a few inches closer to making racial profiling the unconstitutional law of the land.

In Tucson, the MAS department has been dismantled; the curriculum has been outlawed, its books confiscated and banned; its longtime director has been fired; the teachers have been reassigned; their classes and new curriculum are being monitored and state officials are going into classrooms to ensure that they and their students are complying with the unconstitutional ethnic studies ban, HB 2281. In the past few days, three more of the teachers have been dismissed, with several more to follow.

This is not the 1950s McCarthy era. Nor is it Nazi Germany. Instead, it is Arizona 2012.

Racism doesn’t adequately explain this situation. Try apartheid, vindictive power and ruthless retribution, all due to the fear of a rising red-brown majority.

For the rest of the story, got to: http://newamericamedia.org/2012/04/arizonas-salt-of-the-earth-moment.php

Rodriguez, an assistant professor at the University of Arizona, can be reached at: XCo...@gmail.com or drcintli.blogspot.com or 520-576-8089

* Keep tuned to this story as support for the affected educators is urgent. Feel free to post/forward story, etc. and leave comments at the New America Media site. Instructions as to hohw to support the teachers will be posted at the following site where there are more in-depth articles on this topic: drcintli.blogspot.com

thanks
Roberto Dr. Cintli Rodriguez

Cintli don't tweet, text, facebook, digg and is not linked.... but you can still email or call me.