Racism Rules in a P.C. World

Source: Hendersonville Star News

Metro police say they have no suspects and no motive for why a man fired at customers Wednesday night inside a Hispanic billiards club, seriously injuring one person and hitting another in the leg.

Fabion Ortiz, 25, was in critical condition after he was shot in the back when the armed man reached into the Billares Guadalajara Pues, 15118 Old Hickory Blvd.

The shooter cracked the door open, reached in with his right hand, covered his face and began firing at customers seated just inside the door, said the manager, Alberto Cervantes.

Another man, Felipe Cruz-Rios, 21, who lives at the same Hickory Trace Drive address as Ortiz, was shot in the leg, Metro police spokesman Don Aaron said.

Just your standard newspaper fare, right? A story detailing the facts known about a crime. Then comes the interesting part.

Aaron said police believe drug sales have occurred inside the business but there is no apparent connection to the shooting. Aaron said: "There has been no indication to us about any type of hate issue. We need to get further into this and establish a motive."

Exqueeze me? Hate issue? Who said anything about a hate issue? The very first sentence of the story reports that the police have "no suspects and no motive." So how, exactly, did we get from having absolutely nothing to putting the possibility of a hate crime on the table?

Jose Gonzalez, executive director of Conexion Americas, which aids Nashville-area Hispanic families, said, "Clearly the negative rhetoric that has permeated some media and some political campaigns" on the issue of illegal immigration "has made it easy for people who are anti-immigrant and xenophobic to be more visible and to make their points of view heard.

"Whether that has translated to hate crimes — I don't know. That's a question for the police."

Hmmmmmmmm. I wonder why Mr. Gonzalez was contacted to comment on a story about which the police has next to nothing in the way of facts. I guess, in the absence of facts, this reporter thought the best thing to do was to elicit an opinion from someone who has absolutely nothing to do with the events besides the fact that he's Hispanic and the victims were Hispanic.

What's really crazy is that, in a world where political correctness runs amok, Mr. Gonzalez and this reporter can play the race card without fear of mainstream criticism, but I'll be branded a racist for pointing it out.

Technorati Tags
Illegal Immigration * Racism * Race Card * Anti-Immigrant