"Boricua am I"

Peter DiGuadio links to a column by my Backstory colleague, Robert Miranda. Essentially, Robert argues that indigent peoples were in the Americas practicing human sacrifice while the rest of us were still on the other side of the pond having jousts and doing all that European knight stuff. (Actually, he didn't mention human sacrifice or jousts, but I needed a little atmosphere.) Latinos, he continues, are part indigenismo and, besides, they didn't kill Kennedy (he does say that and he's right; it wasn't a latino, it was a communist). So, he concludes, don't call "us" "illegal."

So far I get along well with Robert, but this is vintage Miranda in its enthusiasm and in the way it gradually takes leave of reality. (NB: At least I linked to your newspaper; that ought to bump traffic by two, three, maybe even four.)


"Boricua I am," says Robert, so don't mess with me.

Boricua you may be, but illegal are the undocumented. Perhaps the Spaniards stole Mexico from the Aztecs just like Kings Itzacoatl and Montezuma and the Tenocha tribe stole it from all the other indigenismos in the Mexican valley. Just like Muslims stole, to throw out one example, Turkey from the Christians. History is not pretty, but it does have a statute of limitations.