Women on the Wall and IRCOT Founder Rebecca Forest Says There are Too Many Hispanics in Texas Legislature

Racism raises its ugly head at the most interesting times. Saturday, June 11 in Austin, the founder of the Immigration Reform Coalition of Texas (IRCOT) and Women on the Wall, Rebecca Forest told a sparsely attended group of protesters that there are just too many Hispanics in the Texas Legislature. Is this the voice of those who support legislation like State Senator Tommy Williams so-called "Sanctuary Cities" bill (SB 9), a bill which has somehow become a "catch-all" for all the anti-immigration bills that didnt make it during regular session?  Are they really anti-illegal immigration or are they just anti-immigration, or worse yet, anti-Hispanic?

UPDATE: I will be on Dallas KRLD Radio with Scott Braddock Wednesday morning at 10:50 to discuss this story.  Tune in and listen please! 

For a very long time, I have been telling people that groups like hers, ALIPAC, FAIR and NumbersUSA are not anti "illegal immigration" they are, in fact, anti-immigration and anti-Hispanic.  Ms. Forest goes out of her way to clearly illustrate my point.

The following video is very hard to hear because of wind noise, but in the beginning of the video you can clearly hear her say, "If you want to know why we cant pass legislation in Texas its because we have 37, no 36, Hispanics in the Legislature. All of the states that have passed legislation have a handful and I mean literally, some of them have NO Hispanic legislators, well, maybe 3 or 5 or something. So thats, umm, part of our problem and we need to change those numbers." Yes, thats right... She said we have too many Hispanics in our Legislature.

Ms. Forest, those numbers are indeed going to change, but clearly not in the way you seem to hope.  With Hispanics being the fastest growing segment of the Texas population, the number of Hispanic legislators will continue to grow and there is nothing you can do to stop that. Nor should you. The real question is, will those legislators be Conservative Republicans like those currently in the recently formed House Hispanic Republican Conference, or will they join the ranks of liberal Democrats as has mostly happened in the past? With comments like these, I am afraid more could be driven to the latter and not the former.

In the wind noise she went on to say, "Umm, we need to do something about that in fact, during the debate on "sanctuary cities," several Hispanic legislators testified that their grandparents and their parents were migrant workers who came over here to work and that THEY even worked in the fields. And some of them even admitted that they had been here illegally and that they came illegally. So the problem is these Hispanic legislators … is that its too close to them and they, umm… simply cannot vote their conscience correctly. So thats about all I have to say to you, please come to the hearing, and help us spread this message. Thank you.

US Border Watch founder, Curtis Collier said today, "This is one of the most stupid statements I have heard in a long time. US Border Watchs policy has always been that illegal immigration is not a Hispanic focused issue.  The reality is, illegal immigrants come here from many nations, races and cultures.  Most through an unsecured border and visa overstays.  Comments like those from Ms. Forest yesterday are not helpful in trying to resolve these issues and our nations problems. They only help to drive a wedge between Conservative Hispanics and Republicans."

Democrat blogs have picked up this video and are spreading it like a West Texas Grass Fire. And thus the mission of ALIPAC, FAIR, NumbersUSA, IRCOT and Women on the Wall are revealed and at the same time accomplished. That being to divide the Republican Party on the issue of Illegal Immigration and Border Security while creating a wedge between non-Hispanic Conservatives and Hispanic conservatives. Look at links above at the boards of directors of FAIR and NumbersUSA and you will find liberal, pro-choice, anti-population growth, anti-Hispanic and pro-radical environmentalism activists. Look at the zero population growth writings of NumbersUSAs Roy Beck. Ms. Forest is echoing their sentiments. Are these the kinds of people we should be listening to about Texas legislation?

Could this serious case of foot in mouth disease reflect back on the presidential aspirations of Texas Governor Rick Perry?  The Dallas Observer thinks so stating, Rick Perrys Supporters Cant Stop Making Him Seem Like a Closed-Minded *****." Even the Texas Tribune had to throw in the Forest comments in an article about a possible Perry run.  The Houston Chronicle said Gov. Perry was forced to respond to these low comments through his spokesperson, Catherine Frazier stating, "The governor certainly does not agree with such misguided and unproductive comments. This is not about race or politics - it is about public safety. We must ensure our peace officers have the discretion they need to keep Texans safe."

To see what the conservative Hispanic legislators are accomplishing (and we need more of them, Ms. Forest!...) look at our series of interviews done this spring with the members of the Hispanic Republican Conference. Look at real business solutions being proposed in the Texas Legislature by Hispanic Legislator Raul Torres.  Learn from Hispanic Legislator Jose Alisedas experiences that led to his strong support for our Voter ID legislation. Listen to the call for a real solution to the problems of Border Security and Illegal immigration by HRC Freshman of the Year, Hispanic Legislator John Garza. Experience the strong Conservative principles of Hispanic Legislator Larry Gonzales. Feel the passion of Hispanic Legislator Dee Margos focus on the three Fs of Faith, Family and Freedom. Watch the transformational political leadership of Hispanic Legislator Aaron Peña as he helps bring more Hispanic Conservatives into the Republican Party.

David Jennings of BigJollyPolitics.com was also quick to point out the error in Ms. Forests comments stating, "Let me help Ms. Forest out a bit. You arent going to see fewer Hispanics in Texas government, you are going to see more of them. Rather than cast a net that looks rather racist, why not work within the Hispanic community and identify like minded citizens who agree with conservative principles? Although frankly, Im not sure she knows much about them."

San Antonio Tea Partys newly elected president, George Rodriguez, also in attendance at the rally, came to the podium after Forest and quickly corrected her ill-stated remarks saying, "That was an unfortunate choice of words. I completely disagree with that. The problem is not that we have too many Hispanic legislators. The problem is that we have Hispanic liberal legislators. What we need to do is find conservative Hispanics to run for office so we can have conservative Hispanics that can vote on these issues."

Ms. Forest, what we need in Texas is less hateful, divisive and yes, racist rhetoric that was on display recently on the steps of the Texas Capitol and more leadership from true Conservatives whether they be Hispanic, Black, White or any other nationality, race or heritage. 

Comments

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stupid and uneducated comment. Yes. Hate speech? I wouldn't say that. she obviously has not met some of the great conservative hispanics and all she has seen on the news are the hispanics waving mexican flags and wanting open borders. She clearly needs to be educated more about the topic and we need to do a much better job of showing that there are MANY great hispanics in the Texas Legislature. But I wouldnt say it was hate speech. She did not say that hispanics need to go from the legislature because she doesn't like hispanics. She said hispanics need to go from the legislature because of her misguided thought that the hispanics in the legislature are holding up protecting our borders. It was a stupid comment and she needs to be called out for it and shown that it is not hispanics holding up protecting our border, it is the liberal hispanics and other liberals in general. there are MANY great conservative hispanics who are standing up against illegal immigration and their work should be applauded instead of them being put in the same group as the hispanics who do not want to protect our borders. I do not know her and I could be wrong, but I would suspect if we showed her the reuth about all the great hispanics in Texas then she would change her tune...

David, I must respectfully disagree with you on a couple of points here. First, Rebecca is not some un-informed person who just stepped up to a microphone.  She is one of the leaders of a coalition of anti-immigration groups in Texas and has probably spent more time in the Texas Legislature the past 4-6 years than most legislators have. She knew exactly what she was saying and meant exactly what she said.

Secondly, it was not Hispanics nor liberals who held up most of the immigration related legislation this session.  Most of these bills were stopped in committees controled by conservative Republicans who did not want to see Texas follow the path of economic destruction Arizona has placed itself in.  Texas is a land of great opportunity.  We need less regulation not more.  If you read the text of most of these bills, the did little if anything to truly address the problem of border security or immigration reform.  But they would have been successful at driving a wedge between Republicans and conservative Hispanic citizens who's votes we will need in the 2012 election cycle. 

Like I had said, I do not know the woman so I was just "hoping" she was uneducated about what is going on because if you just watch the news you would think it was all the hispanics that want open borders and march down the street with mexico flags. of course I know that is not true and I know that there are many conservative hispanic leaders here in Texas and I know that most hispanics are conservative in their beliefs. I know this and I want to help educate others about hispanic republicans.... i was just hoping this woman just needed to be educated but from what you just told me It sounds like she knew what she was saying. very sad

Question? What or Who does the Texas Tea Party represent? Does the Tea Party consider Hispanics a hindrance to their political agenda? What are the true goals of the Texas Tea Party? I ask these questions after reading the comments made by Rebecca Forest, the co-founder of the "Immigration Reform Coalition of Texas" and a Tea Party leader? To publicly declare that our state has a problem because of the 36 Hispanics in the Texas Legislature is both harmful and hurtful. To assume that our problems will be resolved by lowering the number of Hispanic Legislatures is like saying "the south shall rise again". If these are the true sentiments of the Texas Tea Party, I strongly encourage the Tea Party to "snap out of it" and reconsider its goals and ambitions for the future. Rebecca Forest has blown a very large hole in the bridge that individuals such as myself have been attempting to build between the political process and the Hispanic community. My suggestion is that the Tea Party of Texas and the Immigration Reform Coalition of Texas take a very close look at its leaders and their intentions before any more damage is done.               

 

   Eduardo Lopez de Casas, Harris County Chairman of

4        The Republican National Hispanic Assembly

I attended and spoke at this event. I am Hispanic and I would know racism.  Rebecca is nothing of this sort.  It is unfortunate that people like Mr. Price, who have a "hate agenda" to put out such ugliness.  Mr. Price is attempting to ruin Ms. Forest's reputation by taking her words out of context and she never said "too many Hispanics"  she pointed out the number of Hispanic legislators.Mr. Price should be held accountable for his hate article. Shame on Bob.  You are part of the problem - hiding behind that old tactic to quiet good Americans who actually care about this country....using the "race card" as an excuse to print lies.You, Mr. Price, do not speak for this Latina (nor for my friends who are also Hispanics and do not agree with your hate).

Ms. Espinoza, you are right.  She did not use the word "Too many Hispanics in the Texas Legislature."  What she did say was there were 36 Hispanic Legislators and that was why we couldn't get the Arizona style, (what some would call hate filled) legislation passed.  She went on to compare that number to other states who had less Hispanic legislators and were able to pass more anti immigrant legislation.  She then said we had to do something about the number of Hispanic legislators in Texas. Did you somehow take that to mean she thought there should be more of them?

I do think there should be more CONSERVATIVE Hispanic legislators. And I am working hard to help that become a reality in Texas. I have nothing against Ms. Forest. She has never done anything I am aware of to bring me harm. I am simply reporting on what she said and the damage that causes to the effort to recruit Hispanic candidates to run for office as Republicans and the effort to recruit conservative Hispanics to vote Republican.  I am sorry you think that is hateful.

 

Thank you for your comments Eduardo.  You hit the nail on the head. Thank you for your work. We should talk sometime to see if there is anything we can do to help you and your cause.

Maria,
Many hispanics know that you are a minority among minorities who hate your own ethnicity. You always surround yourself with racist people.
You belong to IRCOT which is John Tanton's organization. He is an enviromentalist who does not are about illegal immigration but about minority groups overpopulating our conuntry becasue he is a white supremacist. You are wrong. Rebecca is your past boss and she handed to you your organization IRCOT founded by pro-abortion people. You do not help her by coming to her defense since you are the top "Latina racista" in Texas.
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