Joe Arpaio, Child of Immigrants

[Doug the Dem]

Arpaio was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, on June 14, 1932, to Italian parents, both from Lacedonia, Italy.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio

Hypocrite!

[Chasstev365]

1. Sickening, but not surprising!

[AlexSFCA]

2. but they were white

my understanding he only went after latinos.

[Spider Jerusalem]

3. Immigrants from southern Italy weren't considered "white" back then (n/t)

[SweetieD]

5. Don't use that trope. They were considered white. Its just that some were discriminated against

because they were immigrants and the "other" not american enough. Anti-immigrant fervor has been around since this country's inception.

[flibbitygiblets]

4. Unfortunately there's such a thing as "hierarchical racism"

I find this concept disgusting, but I've seen it personally, as I'm sure most of us have.

The major categories, in terms of least-to-most racial discrimination include Caucasians, then Asians, then Latinos, then Indigenous peoples, then African descendants.

Within each category there is even more racial hierarchy, such as northern Italians see themselves as superior to say, Sicilians, who have darker skin. There are similar "class" disparities within the various Latino heritages, such as Mexicans perceived as "better" than, say Hondurans. Again, I find it stomach-churning, but I'm just stating what I've personally observed.

So even though Arpaio's parents may have been immigrants (and in the US, Italians were once openly discriminated against), he sees himself as "superior" to latinos, and is unable to translate the hypocrisy his own heritage once faced to that which he himself has perpetrated.

All I can hope is that there are some "teachable moments" in this sad story.

[UTUSN]

6. But of course he is. Plus DRUMPF's war on immigrants comes after his mother and two

of his wives were immediate immigrants. He's "DRUMPF" because his great-grandpaw is who changed it, being an "illegal" immigrant in Germany, and because the immigrant experience is such a *LARGE* part of his life story.


ON EDIT: The Wiki on Friedrich now discounts that "Drumpf" was changed by him, says that the earliest ancestors were surnamed "TRUMP," so I might have to discontinue my usage, but that's fine, since "TWITLER" is even better.