McAllen protest?: Get off of 10th Street
Get off the middle of the street. That’s what a lot of McAllen drivers had to be thinking Saturday afternoon into the early evening as hundreds of protesters mucked up S. 10th near La Plaza Mall. You know, the area of McAllen that already has to deal with traffic congestion.
Get in the middle of the street, walk down it carrying Mexican flags, when few of the protesters would choose to live in Mexico given the chance. That’s why they are living on this side of the border, even though it’s cheaper to live south of the Rio Bravo.
One guy got the so-called protest started by posting an invitation on TikTok to gather Saturday afternoon in McAllen.
Why not. It’s a busy shopping time. Let’s screw up the traffic flow and make everyone wait longer in a traffic lane.
For what exactly?
President Donald Trump, ICE, Homeland Security have yet to arrest Joe the plumber or Sylvia the hairdresser. Instead, they’re taking dangerous felons off the streets who are in this country illegally.
Yet, some people, for political gain, have conveniently flipped the narrative, claiming that all Americans of Mexican descent, Hispanic descent, are now somehow in danger of arrest by ICE agents. The phrase “mass deportation” is tossed around as if that’s a real threat to honest, working-class Americans of Hispanic descent.
Like the Easter Bunny, it has no basis of fact.
Trump’s Plan
The Saturday protesters in McAllen conveniently forgot that Trump won all four counties this last election that comprise the RGV. Clearly, that majority wants an end to unbridled mass illegal immigration, the granting of asylum to almost anyone who asks for it, and the inability of the federal government to make public safety a priority.
In Saturday’s protest parade, which included hundreds of Mexican flags seen waving in the breeze, signs were held that made little sense, which included those in the hands of children:
“Our parents are not criminals.”
Who said they were?
Whoopi?
McAllen Mayor Javier Villalobos took to social media Sunday to state the obvious:
“We don’t want to get involved in politics, but we want to keep everybody safe. That’s what we want to do. Did we like what happened yesterday? The answer is no. Do we want it to happen again? The answer is no. Now, if somebody wants to protest peacefully, we have no issue.”
Agreed, but blocking 10th Street on a busy afternoon is just downright rude, with no thought to anyone but the people taking selfies, protesting against something of which they know nothing about — Trump’s deportation of dangerous felons.
You know, the kind you wouldn’t want living next door or babysitting your kids.
What is disheartening, really, and you wouldn’t see this in Mexico, is the number of people carrying around Mexican flags Saturday. What ICE is doing now has nothing to do with being anti-Mexican, but everything to do with securing the southern border and deporting dangerous criminal from the streets of the U.S.
Who can oppose that boggles the mind.
Yet, let’s demagogue it. Let’s get kids to carry signs that they don’t even understand. Let’s get people to make comments that make no sense — “Speak for those who can’t.”
You mean like the sex offender who just deported back to Venezuela?
Sure gonna to miss that dude.
“We understand the right to protest and express views, but we must remember the safety of everyone involved,” Villalobos wrote in his FB post. “We can support peaceful protests without causing chaos or putting people in harm’s way.”
Agreed, but clogging up S. 10th Street near La Plaza Mall on a busy Saturday afternoon, creating traffic congestion and chaos when the flow of traffic is already congested, isn’t the way to get the job done.
Also, all the protesters carrying Mexican flags, please. If you have more allegiance to the land of your ancestors, why are you even living in the U.S.?
It’s because this country is still the greatest country in the world. We give more to charity than any other country. We have more freedoms than any other country. We have more welfare than any other country. Also, compared to poor Mexico, the chances of getting killed by a cartel gunman are still a lot less here than they are south of the border.
At the same time, we have a national deficit of approximately $36 trillion that’s going to have to be settled one way or another.
Taking in the world’s poor is not the way to do it.
Sorry, but we’re broke.
Why it’s so hard to like demagogues, let me count the ways.
Villalobos’s Response
On his personal Facebook page, here’s what McAllen Mayor Javier Villalobos had to say about Saturday’s protest: “I hate responding on social media, but sometimes one is compelled to do so.
“The City of McAllen is in the best financial position ever, the 3rd safest city in the USA, provides the best services in the RGV, and I would venture to say the best in the state of Texas.”
Okay, some mayors are going to disagree with Villalobos, but by definition, as McAllen’s mayor, he’s biased in favor of the city he represents:
“Our economy is strong, and we are the most affordable city in the USA (and we don’t do the ranking), ninth best in the country for small business, and the accolades continue. We have done this by doing what we do best, concentrate on municipal issues. We are a strong McAllen!
“Now let’s discuss immigration. Let’s think. When was the last time you saw federal agents paving our streets, fixing our sewer lines, or drainage, or parks? I know you haven’t, and why? Because they don’t do that. Just like they don’t do that, we do not have jurisdiction of the federal issue of immigration.
“Will we enforce the law? The answer is hell yes. Why do you think we were the third safest city in the country. Will we assist federal agents if asked? Will we hold undocumented individuals if they have a detainer or warrant? Will we make and keep our city safe? The answer once again is a resounding yes!
“The city does not stand in the way of immigration officials in their official duties. It’s laughable to say that McAllen is a sanctuary city.
“So I ask that instead of protesting and annoying drivers, instead of spewing rhetorical hate towards immigrants, illegal, or not, come together as a country and demand that our immigration system be fixed, that our borders be secured, and our national security be strong.
“Demand that labor be readily available from other countries to keep our economy strong, and our families fed. Of course, when lawfully done.
“At the end, call me Republican, RINO, Democrat in disguise, or whatever you wanna call me, but I will continue to serve our great city to the best of my ability without regard to political affiliation, and always with McAllen’s best interest at heart. I stand to serve.”
Meanwhile, no doubt, as this is being written, another local protest is being planned for this weekend.
The joy.
LUPE’s Response
Quick to respond to Villalobos’s statement, the union that Cesar Chavez helped to create, LUPE (La Union del Pueblo Entero), issued its own response, condemning the mayor’s statement:
“We strongly condemn Mayor Villalobos’ recent statement belittling and shaming McAllen residents who took to the streets last Saturday, February 1st, to exercise their First Amendment right of freedom of speech. In what was a powerful demonstration of solidarity and defiance, protestors came out to peacefully demand justice for immigrant communities and oppose the harmful, anti-immigrant policies of the Trump administration. For the mayor to dismiss their concerns as silly and “annoying” reveals a profound ignorance of the real struggles and concerns happening in his own backyard. He has a responsibility to listen to the voices of his constituents and acknowledge their right to peacefully express their views. The rally turnout was a clear indication that a significant portion of the community shares these concerns—concerns that these extreme anti-immigrant policies are dangerous, not just for immigrants but for everyone, and should not be tolerated.”
Time out.
No one cares if anyone peacefully protests. It’s when they block a major traffic artery, like S. 10th on a busy Saturday afternoon, that’s when people get annoyed. How hard is that to understand?
More from LUPE:
“We’d like to remind Mayor Villalobos that the majority of those protesting were young people—voters and future leaders—who will remember what side of history he stands on in the face of injustice. We respectfully encourage Mayor Villalobos to reflect on the struggles of his and our ancestors, who faced similar hate and oppression that immigrants continue to face today. It is because of their resilience that he holds the position he does. We stand with the protestors, we stand with immigrants, and we call on our community to hold elected officials accountable for their actions and words. Our fight for justice and equality will not be silenced.”
Final Note
More demagoguery that has no basis in facts.
The feds aren’t targeting the migrant community. They are currently targeting dangerous felons who should have been deported from the U.S. long ago.
The same sort of people who wouldn’t pass a simple background check if they applied for a job at LUPE.
Also, the young people are the most impressionable. Fill their hearts, souls, and minds with massive amounts of BS, and how can anyone expect them to see this story in any sort of factual manner?
They are being told that they are being targeted, America hates immigrants, and that Trump is Hitler.
They will go to college where most professors who lean left will inculcate them with the same bull.
Yet, the working class isn’t buying it.
Which is why all four counties that comprise the Rio Grande Valley voted for Trump in 2024.
Like it or not, that’s the cold, hard reality of the situation.