City Councilman Rod Tam, at a zoning meeting, expressed concerns about the use of illegal aliens in building the West Oahu campus of the University of Hawaii.
However, he referred to illegal aliens as "wetbacks"
http://www.hawaiireporter.com/storyPrint.aspx?fb0e8250-c179-4448-9d74-dff1ce1d537b
1) Tam claimed that he didn't know that the word "wetback" was considered offensive to Mexican-Americans.
That reminds me of Dog Chapman, who caught using the N-word, claimed that he didn't know the N-word was offensive to African-Americans.
It doesn't look good for Hawaii, a state that likes to call itself a "paradise of racial tolerance", to have two prominent individuals to display such ignorance on racial issues, especially when it comes to ethnic groups that don't have as many members here.
2)The word "wetback" was originally used to mock Mexican immigrants who swam the Rio Grande into the U.S. However, the word is commonly used by anti-Mexican racists to insult and threaten anyone of Mexican ancestry, even those whose parents and grandparents are born in the U.S
It is similar to the history of the word "haole". The word was originally used to refer to "foreigners". Being that the first foreign people to arrive in Hawaii were of European ancestry, it was later used to refer to all those with European ancestry. While some local Euorpean-Americans refer to themselves as "haole", the word is also used by anti-white racists to insult and threaten anyone with European ancestry, even those whose parents and grandparents were born in Hawaii.
3) Before the "wetback controversy, Rod Tam was known as the "snack and a nap guy"
This was due to his proposal, back when he was a state legislator, for the state government to subsidize snacks for state workers, and to subsidize paid nap time for state workers.
Tam's proposal was heavily ridiculed, and it never went any further in the state legislator.
So, anytime Tam said anything ridiculous or controversial, the jokes about the "snacks and nap" come up again!
So, if Elizabeth Hata-Watanabe (a popular Mexican-Japanese woman who owns the O-Lounge nightclub, a prominent community fundraiser, and recently named by Honolulu Advertiser as "Mom of the Year") was to move Rod Tam's district and run for office -- Tam's political career would be over. Then Rod Tam would have plenty of time to enjoy his snacks and nap!
4) I sent an editorial on this to the major newspapers! It has more commentary, and I'll link to it if published!
