Corky Siemaszko, New York Daily News, September 2, 2009
Suffolk County’s chief executive has been branded the “enabler in chief” of anti-immigrant violence by a civil rights group in a report out today.
The Southern Poverty Law Center charges that County Executive Steve Levy has engaged in “verbal immigrant-bashing” since taking office in 2003 and fueled hatred by proposing county cops “be empowered to detain Latinos solely on suspicion of being undocumented immigrants.”
Levy also supervised raids on 11 homes in Farmingville that resulted in the eviction of 200 day laborers and their families, the group says.
When immigrant rights advocates protested the raids, Levy derided the activists as members of a “lunatic fringe.”
Levy also dismissed as “Communists” and “anarchists” critics of Mayors and Executives for Immigration Reform—a group he co-founded that “promotes immigrant-cleansing ordinances,” according to the center’s report.
{snip}
Levy—whose paternal grandfather was a Jewish immigrant from France and whose maternal grandparents were Catholics from Sicily—did not address the Law Center’s charges directly.
{snip}
After the Lucero slaying, Levy insisted there was no connection to his policies, saying it was not a “question of any county policy or legislation,” but “a question of bad people doing horrific things.”
{snip}
Original article
Email
Corky Siemaszko
at csiemaszko@nydailynews.com .
(Posted on September 3, 2009)
Comments
How did Levy “fuel hatred?” All he did was enforce the law. It just so happens that only certain kinds of people seem to be in violation of certain kinds of laws.
As for the SPLC, I predict that within a year, they will say or imply that 99% of white people are part of a vast right wing conspiracy, and their credibility will be so down in the dumps, even more so than today, that they’ll have to make major layoffs and cutbacks.
I live in Suffolk County and these accusations are pure bull. If anything the illegal invaders get treated too well which is part of the reason why eastern Long Island is infested with them. Also, what do Mr. Levy’s grandparents have to do with this? I’m sure they came to this country legally.
I actually don’t like local cops being able to jail people on suspicion of being illegal immigrants. If we go down that road, pretty soon, they’ll be able to jail anyone outside their house for suspicion of anything. If it can be proven that an individual is an illegal immigrant, than by all means deport him or her, but if not, innocent until proven guilty applies.
SPLC fuels hatred towards Native Born White Americans.
The SPLC continues to do what it does best — spew hatred at anyone to the right of Bill Clinton. If you dare enforce immigration law the SPLC brands you as the next Adolph Hitler. I’m delighted that most of the people commenting on the Daily News site see the SPLC for what it is.
Apparently the election of Obama has emboldened the SPLC as they are pulling out all the stpos these days. This organization is positively hysterical at this point, seeing “racists, xenophobes, bigots, etc.” around every corner and under evey rock. And sadly, the media and political establishment buy every dispicable word of it!
HH:
I think the real reason is the Madoff scandal hurting the bottom lines of many SPLC donors. I take the SPLC getting more shrill and desperate in their rhetoric, and that they are casting an increasingly wider and wider net on the right wing, a net so big that it catches fish that aren’t really right wing, as a clue that they’re bumming for money.
I actually don’t like local cops being able to jail people on suspicion of being illegal immigrants. If we go down that road, pretty soon, they’ll be able to jail anyone outside their house for suspicion of anything.
I too am wary of granting police too much arbitrary power. But if a person is clearly a Mestizo, doesn’t speak English, works as a day laborer, and lives in a one family house with 10 similar such people, I’d say you have more than “probable cause” that he’s here illegally.
Anon 6:44 wrote:
I actually don’t like local cops being able to jail people on suspicion of being illegal immigrants. If we go down that road, pretty soon, they’ll be able to jail anyone outside their house for suspicion of anything. If it can be proven that an individual is an illegal immigrant, than by all means deport him or her, but if not, innocent until proven guilty applies.
Well it is simple, non-legal immigrants should not be able to get state ID period. Any ID that a legal worker can get should be timed. If you don’t have ID you are detained and checked out.
If anyone wants some cheap laughs please check out the $PLC’s website:
http://www.splcenter.org/index.jsp
They also have a “Hate Group Map” (I am not making this up) of groups they claim pose a threat to the United States:
http://www.splcenter.org/intel/map/hate.jsp
Judging by volume, the groups that $PLC considers most dangerous are “Neo-Nazis” and (again, I am not making this up)…”Neo-Confederates”??? Perhaps the $PLC should look at a calendar as the movements these groups represent ended in 1945 and 1865 respectively. Why be concerned with Osama Bin-Laden when the Confederates could go on the march any day now???
Ironically, the $PLC whose staff and contributors are heavily Jewish, ignores radical Islam the hate group that poses the greatest threat to Jews and Christians as well. Oh sure, they mention the black “Nation of Islam” groups that mostly keep to themselves. However, the radical Islamists that originate from the Middle East are not even touched upon even after the 911 and other attacks, and their teaching in radical mosques that Jews and Christians are just animals. Very, very curious.
The $PLC also wantonly classifies organizations that dare to analyze or criticize immigration policy as “hate groups”. These include Dan Stein’s very civilized “Federation for American Immigration Reform”. Steve Levy who is just performing his job as a law enforcement officer was smeared. Lou Dobbs is also regularly excoriated.
The $PLC’s “Hate Watch” blog contains hysterical postings about groups whose total membership would have a hard time causing a backup at a 711 store checkout line. The First Amendment is evidently not revered judging from many blogs and postings:
http://www.splcenter.org/blog/
In my opinion, it is unbelievable that an irrational, hysterical organization such as the $PLC that seeks to gut the First Amendment has any credibility, or is able to obtain such substantial financial contributions.
Is there something in the water?? I’m continually astounded at the number of insane Americans now.
Nice to see someone flinging slurs back at hate groups like the SPLC. When someone calls you a racist, call them a communist, anarchist or simply call them a racist back.
None of the charges flung by either side are true nor do they have to be, but that doesn’t matter in today’s American immigration debates.
“The $PLC’s “Hate Watch” blog contains hysterical postings about groups whose total membership would have a hard time causing a backup at a 711 store checkout line.”
I had a brief look at the ‘hate watch’ blog. The eyeball up the top of the page reminds me of a peeping tom looking through a keyhole. Probably seeing if there’s a Nazi (or Confederate for that matter) flag on your wall. A cheap laugh indeed!
@ #10 Skipper: I am Jewish myself, and yet have not ever figured out why so many Jews support gun confiscation, excuse me, “control”, support groups like SPLC, and do some of the other strange things they do.
Trust me on this: not all of us are like the supporters of the SPLC. And I sure as hell don’t support the ADL in its present condition. About the only Jewish organization for which I have any respect is the JFPO.
Every State should have its own Immigration Service, to ensure that Illegal Aliens do not take up residence in, and jobs, medical care, and seats in Schools away from, those lawful State Residents.
These State Immigration Services should verify the status of anyone suspected of being an Illegal Alien, and if they are found not to be a Resident of that State, or any other State in the Union, then they are automatically Deported to their home Country.
Obviously, with the notice that many States have given the Federal Government of their 10th Amendment Rights, they have an obligation to their own State Residents, and their saftey, which the Federal Government has abdicated. We can legally do this, and secure our own States, from these invaders.
Then, Uncle Sam can choke on it.
