The latest example is Carlos Flores, Mexican Consul General for North and South Carolina. Or would it be more correct to call Flores the Mexican Colonial Governor of the Carolinas?
A McClatchy article reports that
Carlos Flores Vizcarra was appointed consul general of Mexico for the Carolinas in October 2009 after spending five years in Phoenix, Ariz., so he's especially attuned to the nation's - and South Carolina's - debate over immigration laws. In Arizona, Flores Vizcarra often found himself at odds with Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio over the construction of a tent city as a holding area for illegal immigrants and the limits Arpaio put on Mexican officials' access to those being held.[Mexican Consul General Reaches out to Carolinas, McClatchy, Noelle Phillips, February 13, 2011]So Flores was meddling in Arizona, now he's meddling in the Carolinas.
Flores Vizcarra now is based in Raleigh, but he and his staff travel across North Carolina and South Carolina to offer government services to Mexican citizens living here. Those services include providing Mexican government identification, legal aid, health information and educational opportunities. More than 150,000 Mexicans live in South Carolina, Flores Vizcarra said. He intends to reach out to elected officials and other community leaders to improve the relationships and cultural understanding between South Carolina and Mexican citizens who live here.
Flores Vizcarra spent about an hour with The State newspaper Friday as part of that outreach. Here are some of his thoughts on the Mexican presence here, the economy and immigration.
On why illegal immigrants are the targets of legislation | The debate has become politicized because people are irked over the bad economy. "You have to find someone who is responsible for it. You become less tolerant of the foreigners."Of course, Consul Flores is watching legislation:
On the S.C. General Assembly's attempt to pass an Arizona-style immigration law requiring local police to check for residency status | In Arizona, the law has been bad for both sides of the border. Mexicans do not want to come to Arizona because of the hassle of being asked for identification. As a result, Arizona is losing out on visitors who spend money and laborers to fill out the workforce. "The environment has gotten aggressive and more harsh, and people don't want to go through that."But what if South Carolina did pass such a law?
If passed, South Carolina will discover that immigrants, whether legal or not, will not want to live and work in the state. "They will find another place to go."Is that a threat or a promise?
On fixing the U.S. immigration system | There has to be a diplomatic approach that makes it easier for Mexicans to get work permits. Set up U.S. consulates along the Mexico-U.S. border and expedite visas, background checks and other things that must be done when issuing permits to cross the border.
On tendencies to call all Hispanics "Mexican" | Half of the immigrant population in the United States is Mexican and the other half come from all over the world. "People need to be better informed."Yes, "People need to be better informed" about the sort of subversion carried out by Mexican diplomats like Flores.
So why do we tolerate this?
