And now:Ish <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes:
From: "CATHERINE DAVIDS" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
FROM UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDICATE
FOR RELEASE: WEEK OF JULY 2, 1999
COLUMN OF THE AMERICAS by Patrisia Gonzales and Roberto Rodriguez
HISPANIC HOBO CAUSING PANIC
(NOTE TO EDITORS: In graf 10, Dona Chona has a tilde over the "n" in the
first name.)
Whether the media refers to Rafael Resendez-Ramirez as Mexican or Hispanic,
the accused serial railroad killer is causing a nationwide panic.
Housewives from Kentucky to Illinois and from Texas to California have been
turning in gardeners and farm workers, believing they've spotted the
nation's No. 1 fugitive -- a 5-foot-7, 150-pound, black-haired, brown-eyed,
brown-skinned, south-of-the-border type.
It's a serious issue, yet we can't resist poking fun at how the country
goes into a panic every time they see short, dark, mustachioed,
Spanish-speaking men. They're all suspected of being "illegal"; it's the
Frito Bandito incarnate, except this guy, who has been described as a hobo,
is not after your Fritos.
To make it on the FBI's Top 10 Most Wanted Fugitives list is serious
business: He's suspected in at least a dozen killings, seems to be
everywhere, and the FBI has reported hundreds of simultaneous sightings
nationwide.
We haven't seen this kind of hysteria since the infamous Richard "Night
Stalker" Ramirez caused a similar scare in Los Angeles. By the way, the guy
who played him in the movie bears a striking resemblance to both Richard
Ramirez and Rafael Resendez-Ramirez. We hope he's not moonlighting as a
gardener.
To facilitate Resendez-Ramirez' capture, we will use the description by the
Associated Press' Michael Pearson. He recently wrote: "His common looks --
5-foot-7, about 150 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes -- fit the
description of thousands of Hispanic immigrants."
Our compliments to the writer, who bucked the media practice of referring
to criminal south-of-the-border types as "Mexican nationals," whereas
law-abiding types are usually referred to as "Hispanics." Additionally,
we'd like to give law-enforcement types a heads-up: Hispanic "natives" look
the same as Hispanic "immigrants." In fact, as a photo of Resendez-Ramirez
will attest, he looks indigenous, a fact that may extend the search into
this nation's reservations.
But on to the capture. Since Pearson's description is an estimate and the
suspect seems to change appearances as well as aliases (Pedro, Pancho, Jose
... and sometimes Dinky), we thought we'd be thorough by expanding the
dragnet search to include any Hispanic-type who is under 6-feet tall and
under 200 pounds. (If we include anyone fitting that description who sports
a tattoo and a mustache, that actually might increase the pool, so we'll
leave those two characteristics out).
Now regarding the black hair, brown eyes and brown skin -- that certainly
narrows the field. However, we would advise against automatically excluding
light-skinned Hispanic types. As exhibit No. 1, we submit ex-Menudo star
Ricky Martin; when he was younger (ala Michael Jackson), he certainly was
darker. Of course, we're not suggesting that Martin should be considered a
suspect, but no shoe should be left unturned.
Anyway, as was indicated in Pearson's story, we too admit that "we all look
alike," so that's why we would like to propose that this description be
sent out to all law enforcement agencies. This, of course, would not
encourage "racial profiling." If anything, it might simply aid officers in
their jobs since we know that these types are more prone to commit crimes
as opposed to people who don't match this description. We have to remember
that no one is being singled out here; after all, the description is quite
specific. And while we're at it, let's make sure the U.S. Border Patrol
also has this description because it might help them in their work ...
especially as they conduct immigration raids at churches, schools and
fiestas in states such as Wyoming and Ohio.
Of course, we're being facetious, but not completely because this hysteria
is real. Psychic criminal consultant Dona Chona of Tucson, Ariz., told us
that the fugitive has been seen in so many places that he must be Elvis'
personal car washer. "He's like the 'Chupacabras' (goatsucker) that
terrorized the country several years ago and even made it into an 'X-Files'
episode."
On a similar note, Martin Ortiz, director of the Center of Mexican-American
Affairs at Whittier College in California, who is a life-member of the
National Hobo Association, said that the profile was worded to fit all
Latinos. "I fit the profile. But don't we all."
Ortiz, who hails from Barrio Huarache in Wichita, Kan., and who rode the
rails of the Southwest and Midwest as a teen-ager, said that law
enforcement should not use these profiles. "It's an injustice to us."
We're not sure if he meant that it's an injustice to people who fit the
profile or to hobos.
COPYRIGHT 1999 UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDICATE
* If anyone has seen the fugitive, please contact authorities at:
1-800-GetHobo
Reprinted under the fair use http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html
doctrine of international copyright law.
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Tsonkwadiyonrat (We are ONE Spirit)
Unenh onhwa' Awayaton
http://www.tdi.net/ishgooda/
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