Latinos Need Diversity Protection

While serving as a bombero (Mexican firefighter) in Tijuana for many years in the mid-90’s, my captain once introduced me to a police captain this way: “Leo nacio un Americano, pero in su cori-zon, es un Mexicano.” Translation: Leo was born an American, but in his heart, he is now a Mexican.” I felt so proud of that!

I was an Anglo, but I had developed the sensitivities of the Latinos and now as a member of our national SPJ Committee on Diversity, I bring those Latino sensitivities to those duties.

From my perspective, I feel safer walking down the city streets of Tijuana at 4 a.m. in the morning, than I do walking down the streets of San Diego at 4 a.m., where I live in Hillcrest.

In San Diego, I have more fear of being shot by a cop than by a crook. I do not experience that feeling in Tijuana, largely because as an Anglo, I respect Mexicanos. Many San Diegans and neighbors I know are racist and hate the Latinos in their neighborhood. That’s their problem. They do not respect Mexicans.

That racist feeling of discrimination creeps into the newscasts and newspaper stories of our mainstream media in San Diego. If a Minuteman sneezes, local TV news runs a clip on it, as somehow being significant.

But, when surveys show that undocumented immigrants (the local media call them “illegal aliens” as if they were terrorists or something) pay more in local taxes (for food, gas and other products and services) than they take in medical care, those statistics are ignored by the local media.

If it were not the extensive coverage by the local media, the Minutemen would be nothing. They are succeeding largely because of the coverage by mass media provide them, to promote time ... because they “make” news.

The fact that their coverage of Minutemen activities is not good diversity in their newsroom is irrelevant. The national committee needs to change that!

If we closed the border totally, blocking all traffic from moving either way, as some Minutemen advocate, our American economy in the southwest would fall apart.

Busses would not operate. Food wouldn’t get delivered to the market and cars would not get repaired. It would be a disaster. But, those consequences are ignored by the mainstream media.

To be able to understand the Mexican culture and lifestyle, you have to live with them, every day, day after day, as I did when I was a bombero, fighting fires.

Then you’d also understand why the news coverage in the mainstream media is so slanted and biased. And, why it needs help from our National Committee on Diversity. But, the mainstream media isn’t really interested, as it appears to me.

While the national committee considers expanding the scope of the jurisdiction, these basic questions of diversity in local programming in San Diego news coverage remain unresolved.

KUSI Ignores Problems

In another case, involving discrimination in the newsroom, policies at KUSI in San Diego involving a bisexual film editor, John Schardt, and a graduate from one of the finest film schools on the west coast, he was fired because he wanted to include a clip of two men kissing in coverage of KUSI’s coverage of the July 29th Gay Pride Parade in Hillcrest this summer.

He was told to remove the clip and asked to be assigned to another story. Management refused. He was told that was insubordination and he was fired. He is now working as a bagger in a supermarket in Escondido.

We didn’t want to discuss a personnel matter, only diversity in their KUSI newsroom. But, we were rebuffed.

When both the Society of Professional Journalists and the National Gay and Lesbian Journalists Association asked to meet with the KUSI General Manager, Mike McKinnin Jr. — a known conservative — that meeting was never scheduled. The secretary, Shelly, said the G.M. was not available to discuss diversity issues.

Reaction to this blog is invited. Contact me (619) 757-4909 are E-mail at leopowerhere@msn.com.

Leo E. Laurence, J.D.
San Diego News Service
(619) 757-4909
Member, SPJ Nat’l. Committee on Diversity