Carlos Gonzalez Endorses Rich Girard for Mayor
Candidate Mocked Latino Voters in the Past— OPINION
MANCHESTER, NH —Former New Hampshire State Rep Carlos Gonzalez, an immigrant from the Dominican Republic, has endorsed former radio talk show host Rich Girard for mayor despite Girard’s disrespectful behavior towards Hispanic voters.
People from the Dominican Republic are considered Hispanic-American or Latino-American (Latinx).
A 2016 YouTube video post features an excerpt from one of Girard’s broadcasts, where he apparently is making the point that Latino immigrants too ignorant to understand who they are voting for, were casting ballots fr Democrat Hillary Clinton in Londonderry during the Presidential election.
Girard delivers his jibe with what he calls a “bit of a Spanish accent.”
Ironically for a person making the case of Latino voters as ignorant, Girard is ignorant that Latino voters do not speak with a Spanish accent. People who are from Spain may or may not speak with a Spanish accent, when speaking English.
A sardonic laugh — hollow and phony as the man himself — starts out the Girard clip. He says,
By the way, those of you wondering why sometimes put on a bit of a Spanish accent when I say “Eelary Clinton,”it all goes back to friends I have who live in the town of Londonderry who work the polls or at east did back in 2008.
They said all day long in that Democratic primary, Hispanic voters — now wer’re talking Londonderry here. Hispanic voters all day long walking up to them asking, “Which one Eelary Clinton.”
Can’t speak English — can’t read the ballot-but where there to vote for “eelary Clinton.”
Yeah. OK.
“Now I might understand that in Manchester, Ward 5, or Ward 11, or Ward 3, or maybe Ward 4, but Londonderry?” Delivers Londonderry with comic exasperation before breaking into more stage, canned laughter.
“oh…yeah I didn’t realize Londonderry was such a hotbed of Huspance growth, you know what I’m saying. Course, maybe it’s the apple orchards and the bucolic farms. Yeah, it just screams Latino in Latinderry.”
Whether “Latinderry” was deliberate or a flub, the excerpt shows Girard to not only be condescending but contemptuous of Latinos. The Latino voter — real or mythical — is not only dumb and illiterate, but Girard portrays them as lacking agency. He intimates that the Latino voters likely are being directed by the Democratic Party,.
Even the description of Carlos Gonzalez’ background on the Girard for Mayor website — “A legal [emphasis added] immigrant from the Dominican Republic” — is indicative of Rich Girard’s problematic treatment of Hispanic-Americans in the past, in my opinion.
