This letter is a direct response to the grossly inaccurate State News coverage of the Rep. Tom Tancredo, D-Colo., protests ("Protesters crash immigration event," SN 12/1; "Protest attracts national coverage," SN 12/4).
For the record: Tancredo is openly racist and has referred to undocumented workers from Mexico as "a scourge that threatens the very future of our nation." A reader relying solely on The State News for information easily would have read the articles and still been completely unaware of Tancredo's xenophobic and racist views.
In addition, the numerous references to violence — during and after — the Tancredo speaking event is provided in no context. Racial epithets were used by members of Young Americans for Freedom, or YAF, which spurred an understandably heated response from student activists.
The hate speech used by Tancredo's supporters at this event speaks to a larger trend on our campus. Through events like "Catch an Illegal Immigrant Day," MSU's chapter of YAF has created a hostile climate for people of color. So much so that it was recently announced that the Southern Poverty Law Center's January report will list MSU's chapter of YAF as one of the top 25 hate groups in the country.
Both the structure of the Tancredo event, as well as the most recent Opinion Page editorial, sought to quiet voices of dissent ("Protest should be more respectful," SN 12/4). The event's question-and-answer session was structured to ensure only pro-Tancredo attendees could ask questions. Students were left with no other choice but to vocally and visually oppose Tancredo's hate speech.
The State News must stop claiming to value activism while belittling local efforts to combat racism and xenophobia. The Editorial Board took YAF's revisionist and exaggerated claims of violence and vandalism as fact — and then proceeded to advise the activist community on the best way to take a stand. In the years we have organized on MSU's campus, neither of us have seen any members of the Editorial Board organize around progressive issues.
In the editorial, the authors encourage the MSU activist community to stick to the local issues. One of the biggest local impediments to campus activism is the inaccurate and biased coverage of progressive actions by The State News (MSU's so-called "Independent Voice.")
It is too convenient to claim support of progressive ideas, while doing nothing to support local activists. If The State News wants to end their façade of supposed "genuine" student support, then stop writing stories and editorials that undermine and dismiss radical efforts.
Maggie Corser
international relations senior
Triana Sirdenis
health studies and psychology senior
