Coalition of Latino groups sounds alarm over intimidation of voters
/A coalition of national Latino civic organizations raised concerns
about intimidation of Latino voters and potential obstacles to
their participation in the Nov. 2 election. "We're seeing more direct
intimidation of people with Spanish surnames and individuals who are
bilingual," said Ann Marie Tallman, president of the Mexican American
Legal Defense and Education Fund, or MALDEF, in a telephonic press
conference. In such a closely contested presidential race -- and in the
wake of the Florida debacle in 2000, in which thousands of voters were
disenfranchised -- Tallman and other leaders said they are determined
to ensure that Latino voters are not turned away from the polls. "In
any election that is very balanceado, the Latino vote will make a big
difference," said Hector Flores, president of the League of United
Latin American Citizens. But, he added, "First-time voters with limited
English proficiency are easily intimidated." The groups -- which also
include the National Council of La Raza and the National Association of
Latino Elected and Appointed Officials -- cited several situations in
which they said Latino voters were wrongly singled out and discouraged
from voting, including:
- In Alamance County, N.C., earlier this month, the sheriff submitted a list of registered voters with Spanish surnames to the U.S. Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement in an attempt to determine whether or not they are U.S. citizens.
- In two Georgia counties, individuals recently challenged the citizenship status of dozens of people on the voter rolls, based on their Spanish surnames.
- In Pima County, Ariz., during the September presidential primary,
two men dressed in black shirts with "U.S. Constitutional Enforcement"
emblazoned on the back and armed with a video camera patrolled several
polling places in Latino neighborhoods, ostensibly looking for illegal
immigrants trying to vote. [more]
