Editor's note: Upon receiving the above letter from Ms. Murguia, Human Events sent a copy to the office of Rep. Charlie Norwood (R.-Ga.). Mr. Norwood's office promptly sent back a response from the congressman for Human Events to publish. As is made evident in Rep. Norwood's letter, no correction is due La Raza and none will be forthcoming.
It is with great amusement that I read the National Council of La Raza's (NCLR) defense [from its president and CEO Janet Murguia.] against the facts contained in my article, "The Truth About 'La Raza,'" that appeared in Human Events, April 10, 2006. Instead of addressing the troubling facts outlined in the article, NCLR still seeks to hide from the truth through shrewd distractions.
Murguia claims: "Rep. Norwood mistranslates our name as the National Council of 'the race.' The actual definition of 'La Raza' is 'people,' referring to the Hispanic people or community."
According to whom? The online encyclopedia Wikipedia translation reads,
"La raza: Spanish: 'The race.'" Ditto with www.freetranslation.com, translation2.paralink.com, www.freedict.com/onldict/spa.html. But here's even more online fun: Type in "National Council of the RACE" on Google, the world's number one search engine, and it will take you straight to NCLR's home page. Case closed.
NCLR's second objection is where the real deception becomes glaring: "NCLR did not receive $15.2 million in federal grants last year and no federal funds of any kind were used to fund get-out-the-vote efforts or for any political purpose."
By "last year" my article refers to the last fiscal year reported by NCLR on its official website, which is fiscal year 2004. NCLR very cleverly fails to mention this fact, even though they surely knew precisely where the $15.2 million the article mentioned was coming from.
According to page 48 of the National Council of La Raza Consolidated Statements of Activities, Year Ended September 30, 2004, NCLR itself reports it received $15,170,182 in federal grants. [See Figure 1 below.] In the same statement, under "Advocacy and Electoral Empowerment" NCLR reports on page 27, "while in 2002 activities centered on Get-Out-The-Vote (GOTV) efforts, in 2004 the project expanded to include voter registration, modest GOTV, and some elements of election protection," and reports on page 48 that it spent $327,585 directly on "Legislative Advocacy” and another $2,611,827 on "Research, Advisory, and Legislation" - all while receiving that $15.2 million in federal grants.
Figure 1: La Raza's own financial statements reveal $15.2 million in federal grants.
Did NCLR's receipt of $15.2 million in federal funds allow them to redirect other donations towards their combined $2.9 million in political activities? You be the judge.
But the real outrage in NCLR's objections to the article is their disingenuous denial of their links to radical, racist and anti-American groups: "NCLR ... unequivocally rejects, the motto 'Por La Raza Todo, Fuera de la Raza Nada.' (For The Race everything, for those outside The Race nothing.)"
No group can "unequivocally reject" a position while quietly paying out money to groups that support it, which is exactly what NCLR does.
The motto in question is that of the radical group MEChA and can be found online at the homepage of the Georgetown University MEChA Chapter. On the same site, you can read Georgetown MEChA's Constitution, which contains the requirement that Georgetown MEChA maintain current membership in NCLR.
The Internal Revenue Service reports NCLR was actively funding the Georgetown University MEChA Chapter as recently as 2003, as documented in NCLR's IRS Form 990, 2002 Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax, Exhibit 1, Page 1. [See Figure 2 below.]
Figure 2: La Raza's Form 990 shows the group funded Georgetown MEChA.
If NCLR is sincere in objecting to the facts in the article they should have no problem publicly agreeing to all six points mentioned in my article:
1. Denounce the motto "For La Raza todo. Fuera de La Raza nada," as repugnant, racist, and totally incompatible with American society or citizenship - and stop funding groups who support it.
2. Acknowledge the right of all Americans to live wherever they choose in the U.S. without segregation.
3. Commit to sponsorship of nationwide educational programs to combat racism and anti-Semitism in the Hispanic community.
4. Denounce and sever all ties with MEChA and other organizations which hold to the racist doctrines held by MEChA.
5. Acknowledge our borders, the democratic right of U.S. citizens to determine immigration policy, and the right of the U.S. to enforce immigration law and secure its borders against unauthorized entry.
6. Repudiate all claims that current American territory rightfully belongs to Mexico.
Based on the documented and independently verified statements in the original article, not only does Human Events owe no correction to NCLR, NCLR owes the entire American public an apology for deceptively supporting groups seeking to undermine our national unity and sovereignty.
But perhaps the best solution would be for NCLR, from this day forward, to simply start living by the six points above.
Sincerely,
Charlie Norwood
Member of Congress
9th District of Georgia
