Some of Arizona's people in power continue to embrace bigotry and racism in the bills flowing from the Governor's office. The largest immigration-restriction organizations at the center of the American nativist movement are the creation of one man. If you are interested google John Tanton and his networks. Look at where the funding for these groups comes from. Look at some of the board members he has placed in positions within these organizations. You will find a white supremacist and neo Nazi connection and influence.

Less than one month after Arizona's SB1070, our Governor Brewer signed a bill targeting ethnic studies. Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne, the top education official in Arizona has pushed this measure for years stating that the program in the Tucson school district promotes "ethnic chauvinism" and racial resentment toward whites. On the contrary, ethnic studies give students the opportunity to learn about the contributions of people of color to this world that is often ignored or minimalized in Eurocentric history classes. Ethnic studies are not mandatory and are open to ALL students. The TUSD offers specialized courses in African-American, Mexican-American, and Native-American studies. The actual legality of this new law will soon be tested because TUSD has publicly stated that it will not abandon this highly successful educational program. Mr. Tom Horne is now running for State Attorney General. Think this is about votes?

Is it about politicians saying we have power and you don't? Hateful legislation is only partly about illegal immigration, it's really about fear and denial. The old "Anglo" power structure in this state is afraid of losing control, and trying everything they can to maintain their majority power. They will fail, just as these new Arizona laws will fail.

School districts in Arizona are under orders from the state's Department of Education to remove from classrooms teachers with "heavy accents" or "ungrammatical speech." These teachers can be reassigned or fired from classrooms where the students have limited English skills. Targeted teachers will be offered an "accent reduction course." This is happening now in Arizona.

Instead of checking teachers for accents how about checking student performance.

What counts as a "heavy accent"?

Who decides what is ungrammatical?

Does it matter that the teacher has an accent or is it more important that children are learning?

Accents in any language do not measure fluency.

It's just one more example of Arizona's incredible anti-immigrant sentiment, and it's ironic that this state hired hundreds of Spanish speaking teachers, many recruited from Latin America, in the 1990's to teach bilingual education.

Maybe the next bill coming from Governor Brewer's office will change the name of the state. I mean Arizona does sound a little Spanish.

How about Aryanonly Governor?