AppId is over the quota
May 23 2012
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Joseph Rendeiro
(202) 776-1566
jrendeiro@nclr.org
Washington—Today, NCLR (National Council of La Raza) strongly condemned Rep. Steve King (R–Iowa) for his latest attack on Latinos and other immigrants, during which he equated immigrants with a litter of dogs. NCLR also stated that Rep. King’s long history of outrageous and bigoted statements should call into question his leadership role among congressional Republicans and his visibility as a spokesperson on the issue of immigration.
“It is no surprise that Steve King—in saying that we should pick immigrants the way we pick dogs in a litter—has once again crossed the line,” said Janet Murguía, President and CEO of NCLR. “For those of us who have followed Representative King’s troubling career, he obliterated that line years ago.”
“Representative King has amply demonstrated his contempt for common decency over his career. Among his many lowlights, he has called for an electrified fence along the border because ‘we do that with livestock all the time.’ He has compared undocumented immigration to a ‘slow-motion holocaust.’ And he was the only member of Congress to vote against a resolution honoring the slaves who worked to build our nation’s Capitol building,” continued Murguía.
“We know from the great work of the Anti-Defamation League and others that these statements are not gaffes, but are instead deliberate attempts to dehumanize and demonize immigrants. It is clear that Rep. King has nothing constructive to offer in this debate, only a misinformed and bigoted viewpoint that goes beyond the pale. So the questions for us are: why is this man the Vice Chair of the House immigration subcommittee? Why were the Republican presidential candidates falling all over themselves to win his endorsement in Iowa? And why is he continually on television, touted as an ‘immigration expert’?”
“It is long past time for his fellow Republicans and the news media to stop looking the other way whenever King spouts off another outburst of prejudiced nonsense. The Latino community knows what he thinks. What they need to know is if the continued support of his Party means they agree with him,” concluded Murguía.
NCLR—the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States—works to improve opportunities for Hispanic Americans. For more information on NCLR, please visit www.nclr.org or follow along on Facebook and Twitter.
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Issues: Immigration, Immigration Reform, What People are Saying
Geography:California, Far West, Midwest, Northeast, Southeast, Texas
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