[ilbegone]

LEARN FROM YOUR ENEMY



The Raza groups have had their share of infighting and divergence from the middle 60's on.

Corky Gonzalez of the Denver based Crusade for Justice and founding genius of La Raza Unida Jose Angel Gutierrez (Texas) had falling out due to to both of their immense egos (Gonzalez was going give Gutierrez a personal ass kicking on one occasion, but Gutierrez managed to bluff that he had backup [but really didn't] and it didn't happen). Gutierrez' ultimately dictatorial style, internal lawsuits, and personal aspirations of power among the group (after Gutierrez garnering nearly all the say but after spreading himself too thin and relinquishing some power) led to the break up of La Raza Unida. Reies Tijerina was always off on a tangent about New Mexican land grants, and after having spent some time in jail due to the courthouse shooting his radicalism backed off a notch or three. Cesar Chavez wasn't going along with some of the program, particularly that part involving the Mexican government, because illegals were breaking his strikes.

What was the original Chicano movement somewhat diffused and broke into a multitude of independent groups and individuals more or less following the "plan". Some do get funding from the government and entities like the Ford foundation, others are self funding and rely on voluntarism. They don't always agree with each other, but that is kept out of public sight and among themselves. Their platform agendas vary somewhat beyond the basic plan. NCLR appears to want the body count of everyone whocan be stretched into being "Latino" (including those with Puerto Rican and Cuban ancestry), others are strictly Mexico - centric. There is a wide range of racial rabidity degree, a very few are milder, others are the brown mirror of the Aryan nations. Nearly all have a degree of lunacy to them, not much rational discussion. Reynaldo Berrios (La Vida Loca magazine and the book Cholo Style) or the Mexica Movement are prime examples of mouth frothing racial dementia. Their propaganda all involves the white racist boogyman, their house of cards falls apart without drum beat allegation of white racism.


One of the lessons from that time is that lots of energy and resources are used up by perpetually raising funds, that government and other taxpayer funded office (such as schools) with the buildings, communications, and steady paychecks for loyal soldiers are the best non profit sources for organizing to the cause.

The other lesson is that the takeover has to be from the inside, a third party venture isn't going to last to do it.

There also needs to be some friendly media outlet as well, some of which may have been co-opted from the inside.

The egos need to be put aside and power struggles avoided.

And, while it's a national issue, the battle is quietly being fought block by block, with all the grains of sand adding up.

Lesson number one: there has to be enough people to get in on the inside game and survive the nasty political fights, vicious character assassinations, and outright set ups to change things.

I believe it will ultimately be won either way at the town hall level, the grains of sand adding up nationally.