A few weeks ago I sat through four hours of CNN’s Latino in America in verbal horror (and by verbal I mean yelling at my television and my poor husband about the television) watching every caricature my scholarship and my pedagogy about Latino/as seeks to undermine.
Both two-hour segments begin with the theme of illegal immigration, reminding Anglos, in case they had forgotten, that for many the word Hispanic and illegal are always uttered in the same breath. On night number one, CNN shockingly depicted to heated debate on illegal immigration without mentioning their own Lou Dobbs, one of the most public voices vilifying illegal immigrants who is the subject of many Latino/a campaigns demanding CNN fire him. On night number two, the United States’ “wet land dry land policy” for Cubans (who are allowed to stay in the U.S. if they touch dry land) was contrasted with Central American illegal immigrants, who are detained and often sent home. The privilege of being Cuban was contrasted to the marginalization of other Latin Americans attempting to enter into the United States.
MoreSomebody call the "waahhhmbulance" — former beauty queen Carrie Prejean has been mortally wounded by the continuing attacks on her because she had the temerity to defend "traditional marriage" during the Miss USA beauty pageant way back in April. She's so hurt, in fact, that she's displaying her battle wounds on the Today Show and in a brand new book.
Prejean is outraged — outraged, I tell you — that her freedom of speech has been trampled on and is certain that there is some vast left wing conspiracy to "silence" her. She told Meredith Vieira that she is being targeted for her "beliefs":
"The biggest thing and the reason I wrote this book is Americans believe their beliefs are under attack, and this is proof," she told Vieira, adding that the sex tape is another example of what her enemies will do to attack her.
Ah, the "sex tape." That's what Vieira really wanted to talk about on the morning segment, but Prejean refused to answer any about the tape, invoking the secrecy of mediation. It was clarified that that she appears alone on the tape and made it for her boyfriend back when she was 17 years old.
Since her Miss USA pageant answer, Prejean has been making hay as a darling of the religious right – working for the National Organization for Marriage and making the speaking rounds at conservative events. She makes her faith a prominent talking point in speeches and in her new book.
MoreChuck Currie objects to Rep. Lynn Woolsey's call to have the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' (USCCB) tax-exempt status investigated because of its advocacy for the Stupak-Pitts amendment to the House health care bill. Currie says Woolsey's proposal infringes on religious freedom.
It's hard imagine any religious group on the right or left coming out in favor of that kind of restriction. Similar arguments have been about the LDS Church because of its politicking against gay marriage in California and the USCCB in Maine. But as Currie notes, there are First Amendment implications to restricting issue advocacy.
But churches and their affiliated organizations do receive special privileges from the government, and the case of the intervention of the USCCB in health care reform legislation highlights how they are not only exempted from paying taxes, but also from the transparency rules other tax-exempt organizations are required to follow.
MoreIf you get the Women's Entertainment channel in your cable package, be sure to tune in tonight at ten to see RD's Kathryn Joyce discuss her book Quiverfull on a special program, "Born to Breed." For other broadcast times, check out the web site.