Double Discrimination

Hey, you young Latinos: Stay right there in the ghetto! And you gay and lesbian soldiers: Just stay in that closet! That’s the practical effect of what the U.S. Senate decided on Thursday.

The Senate rejected the DREAM Act, which Latinos who came to the United States “illegally” with their parents had hoped would give them a way to stay in the U.S. legally. And it also rejected getting rid of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” law that threatens homosexuals in the military with dishonorable discharge unless they are hypocrites.

Ostensibly, Latinos and homosexual soldiers are to become victims of the new conservative majority’s whims. In both cases, it was Republicans who blocked the reforms. But at the same time, it has become clear that both minorities and their aspirations have become a political football between the parties. Young Latinos have been increasingly aware of these tactics ever since 2001.

That’s when George W. Bush was the first to propose his version of the DREAM Act, only to run afoul of the anti-immigration forces in his own party. Homosexual soldiers are experiencing the same fate under President Obama. During the campaign, he ran on the promise to abolish this legal discrimination. He let the first half of his term pass without decisive action. Only now, after his party lost so much in the midterm elections, is he beginning what will be a futile attempt at change.

To summarize: the Senate’s decision means doubly bad news for both minority groups. First off, discrimination against both will continue; second, the promise to change the law will continue to be an issue mainly for partisan politics.