Dan,

While it is certainly not xenophobic to want the immigration laws of the country followed it is, however, a bit myopic. The argument evades the true issue which is a need for immigration reform. It would be interesting to compare the immigration laws in place during the time your in-laws immigrated vs. today. My guess is the laws were more flexible and may have even benefited from the Reagan Amnesty. Truth is, a big wall and greater military presence on the southern border do less to minimize undocumented migration than penalizing companies who hire them! We also can’t ignore the simple rules of supply and demand as it refers to the work force. Mexico is a developing economy and while it’s middle class has lived through a tremendous growth (both in numbers as well as in purchasing power) over the last 15 years, for many there simply aren’t that many opportunities and are forced to search for them elsewhere. When it comes to feeding your family, a wall is a small obstacle to overcome.

Now all of this is superfluous as it relates to Mr. Suster’s post as the #TACOchallenge has to do with activating current US Citizens who, for whatever reason, have yet to register to vote. The movement is clearly focused on Latino Youth, many of which grow up feeling that their vote carries very little weight in the general election (I for one, remember Bush vs. Gore). Within that connotation, I think it’s important to remember that two of the original Republican candidates for President are Latino, reinforcing the fact that this is not a Liberal vs. Conservative agenda driven initiative, but one which believes that the political system with which the Founding Fathers had the courage to experiment with functions with greater substance and value when more of its citizens are able to partake in their duties.

The TACO Challenge does just that. It motivates a specific segment of the population into participating in the democratic process, regardless of their party affiliation. As such, the amplification of this movement be it through tweets, blog posts, or airplane banners over Santa Monica Bay are nothing if not part of this “Real Conversation” you seek. If in the process we have the opportunity to make light of a candidate, any candidate, who dines on Chow Mein on April 17th to celebrate the end of the Japan-Qing War while he speaks of loving Asians . . . well then I think democracy is working.

Best,

Marcos